Barasa urges State, medics to drop hard-line stances

Kakamega Governor Fernandes Barasa has called for sobriety between the government and medics to help end the ongoing strike.

Barasa said yesterday that hard-line positions by either parties would only worsen the already bad situation.

He called on the Health Committee in the Senate to cease issuing threats of withholding funds destined for devolved functions in counties owing to the strike.

He termed health as “a fundamental devolved function” which needs constant and timely funding from the national government.

“We are in a perilous situation that calls for sobriety and objectivity from both the national and county governments on one side and medical practitioners on the other,” said the governor.

Bad situation

“Threats and intimidation will only worsen an already bad situation because thousands of patients in our public hospitals are suffering and losing their lives,” he added.

Speaking in Kakamega town, Barasa, who is the Finance Committee Chairman at the Council of Governors, expressed concern over the ongoing strike by medical practitioners.

He urged doctors to consider the plight of the suffering patients, saying counties were actively committed to resolving the issues that they had raised.

At the same time, the county chief announced that fertiliser for top-dressing of maize, beans and other food crops had been delivered to depots and other picking points across the county.

“The CAN fertiliser has been delivered and is of very good quality. I urge our farmers to purchase it at a subsidised prize of Ksh. 1,350 per 25-kilogram bag,” he added.