Nairobi — Harambee Stars midfielder Francis Kahata has joined fellow footballing stars who have taken up social responsibility activities to help the less privileged shield themselves from the effects of the new coronavirus.
Kahata on Sunday afternoon donated 10,000 litres of clean water to the people of Mathare 4B slum to help them keep their sanitary levels high in a bid to prevent the spread of the virus.
“I have some friends who live there and what they told me is that one of the things they really need is water. They have soap yes, but they cannot use it without water because that is one of the biggest challenges facing people living in informal settlements,” Kahata told Capital Sport.
“We decided to help provide them with water and we have partnered with a youth group which works with delivering water in the area and we have filled all their tanks so that at least they have something to drink, cook and use for cleaning,”
“At this point when we are told that keeping our hands clean is the first step in stopping the virus, we felt that water was their biggest need at this time,” further added the playmaker who plies his trade with Tanzanian league leaders Simba SC.
He has also stated he will continue working with the group to see how more he can be of help, while also stating that he plans to do more charitable activities in orphanages and children’s homes before he gets back to Tanzania.
“We can’t do so much at the moment because of the government directives on social distancing and gatherings so we will try to do the much we can. But for us, these are the same societies which brought us up and we have to be there for them at all moments,” Kahata stated.
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The effects of the new novel coronavirus has continued to bite especially on the economic front, with people living in informal settlements being the most hit as a huge populace depends on casual labor to put food on the table.
And with the struggle to remain afloat amidst a pandemic, more Kenyan footballers have started playing from the front in ensuring the communities in informal settlements, from where most of them began their careers, are shielded from a possible struggle.
Harambee Stars skipper Victor Wanyama was among the first to throw in his weight through the Victor Wanyama Foundation, partnering with Kenya Red Cross, Africa Yoga Project and the Gina Din Foundation to donate sanitizing kits and foodstuff to over two hundred families in Mathare, Nairobi.
Midfielder Johannah Omollo, who plies his trade in the Belgian top division with Cercle Brugge has also thrown his weight into helping the people of Dandora where he grew up, donating Sh50,000 to help in purchasing foodstuff.
“Families have been unable to meet their basic needs as they rely on the daily wages which they cannot be able to get with companies closing and businesses going down,” a statement from the Omollo’s foundation stated.
The money will be used to buy dry foodstuff which will be distributed on need basis to the people living in and around the Dandora Community.
