Ruto Defends United States Ebola Facility In Kenya

Kenyan President William Ruto has moved to defend the establishment of a U.S.-backed Ebola quarantine facility at Laikipia Air Base, urging leaders not to politicise public health interventions, as hundreds of residents in Nanyuki took to the streets on Monday to protest the plan and a court order temporarily blocking the facility remained in force.

In a statement issued at a media roundtable at Wajir State Lodge, Ruto said the health and safety of Kenyans remained the government’s top priority and sought to reassure the public that the facility was neither exceptional nor out of the ordinary.

“The quarantine facility being established at Laikipia Air Base with the support of the United States is neither unique nor exceptional, but part of a broader national preparedness system.

It is one of 23 such centres under Kenya’s disease preparedness framework,” he said, listing existing facilities at Kenyatta National Hospital, Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret, and Alupe Hospital in Busia among others.

Ruto also cited the country’s decades-long health partnership with the United States, saying it had proven invaluable during the HIV/Aids crisis, COVID-19 and previous Ebola outbreaks, and confirmed that the U.S. government was supporting Kenya’s broader Ebola preparedness efforts.

The president’s statement came amid growing unrest. Hundreds of Nanyuki residents marched toward the perimeter of Laikipia Air Base on Monday morning before being blocked by heavily armed Kenya Air Force personnel who denied them access to the military installation.

Protesters blocked roads, lit bonfires and chanted against the facility, with some demanding that Kenya reject the deal entirely.

“As residents of Nanyuki, we have said we do not want that Ebola rescue centre in Nanyuki. And it’s not just Nanyuki; we’ve said we don’t want it in Laikipia, and not just Laikipia, we don’t want it in Kenya,” one protester said.

The controversy deepened after Kenya’s High Court issued conservatory orders late last week temporarily blocking the establishment or operationalisation of any Ebola quarantine facility under the U.S. arrangement and barring the admission of any Ebola-exposed individuals into the country until the matter is fully heard.

The petition was filed by the Katiba Institute and certified as urgent. The case returns to court on June 2.

Despite the court order, Kenya’s government has said it is pushing ahead with preparations.

The White House had described the proposed facility as “state-of-the-art,” designed to provide high-quality care for Americans who needed to quickly leave the Democratic Republic of Congo without the risks of a lengthy transport back to the United States.

Trump administration officials said a 50-bed unit would be operational at Laikipia within days, staffed and run entirely by Americans with no Kenyan public health officers involved. The U.S. government has committed $13.5m toward Kenya’s Ebola preparedness efforts.

The Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union issued a 48-hour ultimatum to the government demanding full public disclosure of the terms of the deal or it would call a nationwide doctors’ strike.

Secretary-General Davji Bhimji Atellah said Kenyans deserved to know what agreement had been signed on their behalf.