Isaac Ruto urges governors to negotiate with striking workers

Bomet Governor Isaac Ruto has come out to challenge his fellow governors to meet and speak with health workers in their respective counties and convince them to resume work claiming health management is a function that was fully devolved.

Speaking at Kiptenden Primary School in Bureti Constituency, Kericho County, Ruto said it was the duty of each governor to ensure that health systems in their counties were functional and urged them to hold fresh salary negotiations with the doctors and nurses who are on strike so that they can return to work.

Bomet is the only county among the 47 where medical services have not been affected by a nationwide strike which has crippled medical services across the country for four days and caused much suffering to poor Kenyans, who are unable to afford treatment in private medical facilities.

Ruto accused former Health Minister Jacob Macharia of being behind the current situation, wondering why Mr Macharia agreed on a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) with the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Union (KMPDU) in 2013 despite the function having been devolved.

“Most governors realised that such a document existed just two or three days before the strike started,” added Governor Ruto.

The former Council of Governors chairman demanded to know why the national government was retaining billions of shillings to run the national health ministry instead of devolving the funds to be used to employ more doctors and nurses and enhance their pay.

Reported By: Kimutai Kering. Written by Eddy Ashioya