- As the pandemic continued beckoning the country, people continued living in fear of each other and the virus, praying for the situation to calm down.
- On October 20, 2021, Kenyans woke to the good news that the nationwide curfew that had been imposed since March 2020 had been lifted.
Image: ENOS TECHE
Three years ago on March 13, 2020, the first case of Covid-19 was reported in Kenya by the Ministry of Health.
The pandemic which had just struck the country created unprecedented challenges.
People’s lives changed after the government imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew.
From layoffs to school closings, and illnesses to losses. Greetings through hugs or shaking hands were not allowed. Wearing face masks had to become the norm for citizens.
Relationships were affected. People were unable to visit one another due to social distancing.
In cases of emergencies during the curfew hours, phone calls, video calls and messages were the only available means of communication. Others had to dial a toll-free number to be rescued by medics.
As people recall those incidents, some have said that the pandemic resulted in family conflicts around their homes.
“My wife used to complain about coming home late. She used to call me asking for my whereabouts. She said that I might be arrested for violating the curfew time. This affected me and caused my family to crumble,” Kisia a Nairobi resident said.
However, some people said that the curfew improved their relationships and made their love grow stronger.
“The imposed curfew resulted in my boyfriend and I o live together. We were so happy since we created time for each other, as we were both working from home. It also made our lives easier as we were cost-sharing in terms of financial issues,” a resident who spoke anonymously said.
Grace Wangechi and Felix Njeru had planned their wedding for April 5, 2020. They had invited 500 guests. But due to the imposed curfew, they had to rearrange their plans.
“Only six people out of the 500 were allowed inside the church to attend the wedding. The bride, the groom, their best couple and two presiding pastors. No parents, no family, no village mates,” the couple said.
“Social distancing rules and travelling restrictions were the major challenges that made our wedding sort of boring.”
The couples also said that they could not postpone the wedding to allow friends and families to attend and they also don’t regret the few that attended.
“We don’t have any regrets. We felt like God had told us to continue with the wedding. After all, we both love each other and standing at the altar to acknowledge our love for each other was all that we wanted,” they said.
People continued living in fear praying for the situation to calm down.
Kenyans started growing tired of wearing face masks. They decried for the imposed curfew to be removed and go back to their normal lives.
On October 20, 2021, Kenyans woke to the good news that the nationwide curfew that had been imposed since March 2020 had been lifted.
Former President Uhuru Kenyatta said that the infection rates had fallen with less than five per cent of tests each day proving positive.
According to the WHO statistics, from January 3, 2020, to March 7, 2023, 5,688 people lost their lives due to the deadly virus.
342,932 cases have so far been confirmed. However, 23,359,310 vaccine doses have been administered as of February 18, 2023.