Fanya Mambo criticises planned Ebola centre in Kenya – ‘We can’t even manage pneumonia’
By Sharon Atieno, June 8, 2026Political activist Fanya Mambo has raised sharp concerns over Kenya’s preparedness to handle Ebola, warning that the country is still struggling with basic health challenges yet is now confronting the threat of a highly infectious disease.
Speaking in an interview with a local station on Monday, June 08, 2026, Mambo questioned whether Kenya’s healthcare system is sufficiently equipped, pointing to persistent gaps in hospitals and disease management.
“We can’t even manage pneumonia properly, and yet our health system is still being tested with the risk of Ebola,” he said.
He argued that the national conversation on health should be focused on strengthening basic care, noting that thousands of Kenyans continue to die annually from preventable and treatable illnesses.
“The country that is losing 30,000 Kenyans to malaria every year, 10,000 to pneumonia, 25,000 to cancers, and thousands of Kenyans to diarrhoea has now brought itself to Ebola,” Mambo said.
Hospitals under strain
Mambo criticised conditions in public health facilities, saying overcrowding and lack of resources remain major challenges even at Level Four hospitals.
“We can’t manage pneumonia. Go to a Level Four hospital, and you don’t even find a ward where people are not sharing a bed,” he said, adding that patients are often forced to pay additional charges even for basic admission.
I think the conversations in health are supposed to be in that direction,” he said.
He questioned how the country could claim readiness for Ebola response while struggling with such fundamental health system gaps.
Leadership decisions under scrutiny
Mambo further criticised what he termed as poor representation in key decision-making spaces, arguing that health policy discussions are not reflecting the realities facing ordinary Kenyans.
“I think when we send such bad people to go and represent us on the table, we lose direction,” he said.
His remarks come amid heightened debate on Kenya’s Ebola preparedness, following renewed regional concerns and ongoing discussions on isolation and quarantine facilities in several counties.
Health stakeholders continue to urge the government to strengthen primary healthcare systems even as surveillance and preparedness for infectious disease outbreaks intensify across the country.
Salasya questions Kakamega Ebola facility plan
His comments come in the wake of remarks by Mumias East MP Peter Salasya, who criticised Kakamega Deputy Governor Ayub Savula over plans to establish two Ebola quarantine centres in the county, warning against what he termed as unnecessary alarmist responses.
Savula had earlier defended the proposal, saying the facilities were part of preparedness measures agreed upon by the county cabinet in consultation with the Ministry of Health following rising regional concerns over Ebola outbreaks.