In her ruling, Chief Magistrate (CM) Edna Nyarathi concurred with Saburi’s lawyer George Kithi that Saburi did not break any law since he flew into the country on March 9, 2020 when the government had not issued the self-isolation directive.
Kithi further told the court that Saburi tested negative for the virus and thus there is no way he could have spread the disease.
Photos by Elisha Mulu.
“My client had not committed any offense as charged since at the time he came into the country, the government had not issued the self-isolation directive in the Kenya gazette,” said Kithi.
Saburi had travelled into the country from Germany on 5th March, 2021 and failed to quarantine for 14 days as ordered by the Ministry of Health in regards to combating the spread of coronavirus.
The government had issued travel restrictions to countries affected by the virus but Saburi ignored the directive and was thus prosecuted.
Addressing the media immediately after being released, the deputy governor thanked his lawyers for helping him to win the case.
“I want to say that Covid-19 is real and urge you to adhere to MOH guidelines to overcome the pandemic,” he said and lauded President Uhuru Kenyatta for his relentless efforts to combat the virus.
By Chari Suche and Elisha Mulu
