BONYO'S BONE: Health - Kiambu dropped the ball

Tonight, I pick a bone with the great county of Kiambu and its Governor, Paul Kimani Wamatangi.

For 127 days, doctors in Kiambu have been on strike. That’s four months, one week, and five days. Think about it: in that time, a woman could carry a pregnancy almost to term without ever seeing a county doctor. That is how long Kiambu residents have been abandoned.

And why? Because the county government has failed to pay its doctors, failed to honor agreements, and failed to treat health workers with basic dignity.

Doctors say they are owed more than Ksh.10 million in union dues. Many have defaulted on loans, some are sinking into debt, and others cannot even provide for their own families. These are the very people we entrust with our lives. The very people Kiambu residents run to in their darkest hour. And now, they have been forced out of hospitals, not by choice, but by neglect.

At the apex union, the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU), Dr Davji Atellah has been clear: this is not just a labour dispute. This is a health crisis manufactured by wanting leadership.

And what is Governor Wamatangi’s response? Not dialogue. Not solutions. But quick fixes. He boasts of replacing 300 striking doctors with just 78 fresh graduates barely out of medical school. And he leaned on another 697 intern doctors posted by the Ministry of Health. But those interns have since been withdrawn and redeployed elsewhere.

Governor, you are trying to manage a chronic illness with painkillers. And it shows.

Right now, the few remaining healthcare workers are overwhelmed. So overwhelmed, in fact, that they have issued a seven-day strike notice of their own. Which means, unless this is resolved, Kiambu faces a total health shutdown.

Kiambu is not a small county. It is home to 2.5 million people, making it the second most populous county after Nairobi. For many, it is the bedroom of the city. By day, they work in Nairobi. By night, they retreat to Kiambu.

When a county of this size collapses medically, it is not just a Kiambu crisis. It is a national crisis.

But Governor Wamatangi, instead of facing this head-on, you are posturing. In every gathering, in every media appearance, you brag about being the only Governor who has not taken a trip abroad. You may be saving travel allowances, but still the people of Kiambu cannot access a doctor in their own backyard.

Governor, leadership is about ensuring that when a mother walks into Kiambu Level Five Hospital, she finds a nurse. A doctor. Medicine. Care. That is the true measure of leadership.

And yet, today, families in Kiambu are being forced to seek treatment in Murang’a, Machakos, and Nakuru. Others, those with some money, are pushed into private hospitals. But the poorest, the ones who voted you in, have nowhere to turn. For them, illness has become a death sentence.

And excuses will not do. You cannot hide behind the National Treasury or the Controller of Budget. You cannot point fingers and play victim. You are not the victim here. The residents of Kiambu are. And the responsibility to end this crisis sits squarely on your desk.

Other Governors have faced strikes before. They did not collapse under the weight of them. They invited doctors to the table, negotiated, and found solutions. Why not you, Governor Wamatangi? What is so difficult about dialogue?

Governor, you were elected by 348,371 voters out of a possible 1.2 million. They entrusted you with their hopes, their futures, and their health. And yet, today, they are stranded, sick, and suffering.

It is time to stop the grandstanding. It is time to step away from optics and egos. It is time to sit down with the doctors, not for their sake, but for the lives of the people of Kiambu.

Governor Wamatangi, end this strike. Unlock this crisis. Restore health services. That is your duty. Anything less is an abdication of leadership.