Katiba Institute has moved to the High Court seeking urgent orders to stop the proposed establishment and operationalisation of an Ebola quarantine and treatment facility in Kenya for foreign nationals exposed to highly infectious diseases.
In the petition filed under a certificate of urgency through lawyer Joshua Malidzo, the lobby group has sued the Attorney-General and the Cabinet Secretary for Health over what it describes as a secretive arrangement involving the United States and other foreign governments.
Katiba Institute wants the court to restrain the government from establishing, approving, or operationalising any Ebola quarantine or treatment facility in Kenya pending the hearing and determination of the case.
The institute is also seeking orders barring the government and its agents from receiving, transferring, or facilitating the entry into Kenya of any individuals exposed to or infected with Ebola under the disputed arrangement.
Further, KI wants the court to compel the Health Cabinet Secretary to prepare and submit within 24 hours a comprehensive contingency plan outlining Kenya’s preparedness measures for the prevention, surveillance, control, and response to any possible Ebola outbreak.
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The petition also seeks full disclosure of the terms of any negotiations or agreements relating to the proposed facility, including public health, environmental, biosafety and security assessments, regulatory approvals, parliamentary approvals, and protocols for the admission and treatment of exposed persons.
According to the Katiba Institute, the proposed arrangement raises serious constitutional concerns touching on the rights to life, health, fair administrative action, public participation, and parliamentary oversight.
“The secretive, unilateral establishment of an Ebola quarantine facility raises grave constitutional concerns regarding the rights to life, health, fair administrative action, public participation, and parliamentary oversight,” the petition states.
The institute argues that the case seeks to establish whether the Executive can expose Kenyans to significant public health risks without complying with constitutional safeguards and accountability measures.
“Katiba is asking the Court to determine whether the Executive can expose the public to such significant risks without complying with constitutional safeguards. At its core, the case is about preserving constitutional accountability, protecting public health, and ensuring that no government may place expediency above the lives and safety of the people of Kenya,” the court papers state.
