You'll determine if restrictions will be eased or tightened next month

President Uhuru Kenyatta disappointed a good number of Kenyans last Saturday when he prolonged the nationwide curfew and the lockdown in some counties for another 30 days.

Notably, after the president commented recently that we cannot be on lockdown forever, these Kenyans were hoping he would finally ease the stringent measures. However, many other Kenyans were praying that the status quo remains.

It is these Kenyans, that Uhuru stood with after he weighed expert advice. Truth is there is a high likelihood that easing of the restrictions could have been counterproductive. This is because the infections are still on an upward trajectory, with the country recording more than 100 cases on a daily basis. We now have 2,767 confirmed cases and 84 deaths.

Although some, rightly, point out that the figures are not in tandem with the trajectory of the more hard hit countries, this should not make us to relent. The fact that the infections have remained relatively low here doesn’t mean that we have any special immunity against this virus. If that is the case, it is still unproven. The most plausible reason is that our containment measures are yielding fruit.

If these measures are relaxed, we will most likely go the direction predicted by the medical experts—thousands of fresh infections and deaths. Much as giving people the free hand to eke a living is important, it would be ill-advised to reopen and risk the infections spiking to 450,000 and the deaths to 45,000 by October this year as medics have warned. As usual, there is always that false hope that if such a tragedy strikes it would affect the other person, not you. The bitter truth, however, is that it could be you next in isolation ward or in the cold mortuary slab.

That’s why we should not curse the president for giving us another 30 days. As he pointed out, it is only wise to reopen when cases start falling. Fortunately, it is within our powers to make that happen — social distancing, wearing of face masks, constant hand washing or sanitising, among others, will drive this nightmare out of our way.

Unfortunately, some people are yet to take these measure seriously. Some do not wear masks while others covertly congregate in pubs to quench their thirst. It is such foolish behaviour that accelerates the spread of the virus.

Relaxing the measures now would only make matters worse. So, if you have grown tired of these stifling restrictions and want Uhuru to reopen after the 30 days, you must do what is expected of you.