Former Jubilee Party vice chairman David Murathe has stirred massive controversy after publicly declaring that Kenyans who received the COVID-19 vaccine but do not drink alcohol or smoke cigarettes will one day collapse and die instantly without showing any prior symptoms.
The outspoken politician made the startling remarks, saying, “Kama ulindungwa jab ya corona na hukunywagi pombe ama kuvuta sigara utakufa puh bila kujigawa. ‘Hiyo ni ukweli nawaambia,” Murathe said, insisting that alcohol and tobacco somehow neutralise harmful effects allegedly left in the body by the vaccine.
He claimed to have received the information from unnamed doctors in the United States and Europe who are now treating patients presenting with what he called “vaccine-induced sudden death syndrome.
According to Murathe, the absence of alcohol and nicotine leaves the jab’s “chemicals” free to attack the heart and brain years later, causing instant cardiac arrest.
However, Kenyan health officials dismissed him, saying, “There is zero scientific evidence linking COVID-19 vaccines to sudden death years later.
In fact, data from the ministry shows vaccinated individuals have lower all-cause mortality than the unvaccinated. Mr Murathe should stop spreading dangerous misinformation that can reverse our gains against preventable diseases,” the officials said.
Others termed the statement “medically reckless and potentially criminal”, urging the Directorate of Criminal Investigations to summon Murathe for questioning over public alarm.
Political analyst Martin Kamotho said that Murathe’s outburst is a calculated distraction from the ongoing debate over term limits extension and privatisation as the Safaricom sale is underway.
“When you have nothing to tell the people about rising taxes and unemployment, you invent stories about vaccines killing sober people. It is cheap politics,” he said.
However, David Murathe was at the heart of the 2021 COVID scandal, and what he says could mean something both positive or negative. Meanwhile, hospitals across are open for extra cardiac diagnosis to handle anxious patients demanding heart scans.
