• Police roadblocks at night caused long traffic delays over the weekend, particularly on Thika Road
• Global production delays will postpone the vaccination of all Kenyans until at least 2022
Many motorists were angry after being caught up in a huge traffic jam on Thika Road on Saturday night after the police mounted a surprise Covid roadblock.
Initially the police told motorists that they would not be allowed to proceed until 4am when the curfew ends but eventually they relented and let them continue their journeys at 11pm.
The police are absolutely doing the right thing and should not relent. The problem with previous curfews was that they were not strictly enforced and were therefore of limited value. The police should now ensure that no-one at all travels during the curfew except essential workers.
Strict public health measures are now particularly important to control the spread of Covid because of global delays in the production of vaccines. India is now blocking the export of pre-ordered AstraZeneca doses to Kenya. It will be a long time before all Kenyans are vaccinated.
The police should stay tough on motorists breaking the curfew. Mobile as well as fixed roadblocks should catch motorists dodging the rules. And they should arrest them to be charged in court because almost certainly they will have been engaging in risky behaviour.
Quote of the day: "You gain reconciliation from your enemies, but you can only gain peace from yourself."
Rubin 'Hurricane' Carter
The middleweight American boxer died on April 20, 2014