IN SHORT: A document posted on Facebook claims that the senator for Garissa, Abdul Haji, approved an Ebola quarantine facility in the county for US citizens. He has dismissed the document as fake.
A document posted on Facebook claims that Garissa senator Abdul Haji approved the establishment of an Ebola quarantine facility for US citizens infected while working in Africa.
Ebola is a severe viral illness that can be fatal. Garissa is in northeastern Kenya, about 350 kilometres from Nairobi, the capital.
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The document, dated 29 May 2026, is titled: "APPROVAL OF THE PROPOSED ESTABLISHMENT OF AN EBOLA QUARANTINE IN MASALANI, IJARA CONSTITUENCY, GARISSA COUNTY."
Masalani town is in Ijara constituency, a largely rural area in the south of the county.
The document is on what appears to be the senator's official letterhead and features his signature.
It states that the proposed facility would support disease surveillance, emergency preparedness, quarantine management and rapid response to infectious disease outbreaks. It also describes Masalani as a strategically suitable location and calls on government agencies, development partners and local communities to support the project.
The claim surfaced amid controversy over reports that Kenya could host a facility for US citizens exposed to Ebola while working in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The proposal prompted public concern and legal action, with Kenya's high court issuing conservatory orders suspending plans for the facility pending a full hearing.
The document and other similar posts have been published here, here, here, here, here and here. But did Haji really approve such a facility in Garissa? We checked.
Senator dismisses document, claim
We found a health ministry statement confirming that health cabinet secretary Aden Duale had inspected Ebola preparedness infrastructure at Garissa county referral hospital, including a dedicated isolation facility with a 20-bed unit for confirmed cases and a 10-bed unit for suspected cases.
The ministry said the facility is one of 23 isolation and treatment centres established to strengthen Kenya's preparedness for public health emergencies.
However, the statement does not mention a quarantine facility for US citizens in Masalani, nor any approval by Haji's office.
We searched Garissa county's official Facebook page and website, as well as Haji's official Facebook page, where such official communications would typically be published and found no record of the document.
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On 16 June, Haji posted the document on his official Facebook page with a stamp across it that reads: "FAKE DOCUMENT. THIS DOCUMENT IS FAKE AND FRAUDULENT. IT DID NOT ORIGINATE FROM THE OFFICE OF THE SENATOR, GARISSA COUNTY. DO NOT RELY ON THIS DOCUMENT."
"Ala! Kumbe watu wana overtime ya kunifikiria. Inaitwa mchezo wa taoni! Wasionipenda kazi wanayo! Hii ni story za jaba tu - ipuuzeni," he wrote.
This translates as: "Oh! So it seems some people are working overtime thinking about me. This is what you call a political game! Those who don't like me have their work cut out for them! This is just a made-up story - ignore it."
There is no evidence that Garissa county has been selected as the site of an Ebola quarantine facility for US citizens, and the senator whose name appears on the document has publicly denounced it as fake.
