Kenyan Catholic priest charged with spreading coronavirus
Kenyan Catholic priest charged with spreading coronavirus
April 17, 2020 A Catholic priest was charged in Kenyan
court on Thursday with spreading the coronavirus, the second person to
face such charges in Kenya.
Kenya, which has 234 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and 11
deaths, has banned all public gatherings, limited the number of mourners
at funerals, imposed a daily curfew and restricted movement in and out
of four regions most affected.
Catholic priest Richard Onyango Oduor was charged with having
"negligently spread an infectious disease" after authorities said he
failed to adhere to coronavirus quarantine rules following a visit to
Italy.
He denied the charges in a Nairobi
court, and was freed on a Kshs 150,000 Kenyan (about Shs 5.3 million)
bond. He was ordered to spend another 14 days in quarantine and reappear
in court on May 2.
Archbishop Anthony Muheria, in charge of the Catholic dioceses of
Nyeri and Kitui, told Reuters he could not comment on the case, and it
was up to the authorities to determine whether the priest was at fault.
Last week, another court charged Gideon
Saburi, the deputy governor of the coastal region of Kilifi County, with
spreading the coronavirus by going out in public without taking
precautions. He also denied the charges as was freed on bond while being
ordered to self-quarantine.
Some African countries have had trouble persuading citizens to comply
with restrictions imposed to curb the virus. Kenyan media have been
awash with stories of people trying to circumvent restrictions, holding
parties in their houses and parks due to bar closures. A lawmaker was
arrested for holding a party at a restaurant in the capital on Easter
weekend.
Last week, some Botswana lawmakers were put in supervised quarantine
after failing to observe an instruction to self-isolate. All of the
country's parliamentarians and President Mokgweetsi Masisi were asked to
quarantine for 14 days after a health worker screening them tested
positive.
In South Africa, President Cyril Ramaphosa last week put his
Communications minister on leave for two months, one of which will be
unpaid, for breaking the rules of a countrywide lockdown and having
lunch with a former official.