Governor Anyang' Nyong'o Rules Out Paying Striking Doctors, Vows To Hire New Medics

• Governor Anyang' Nyong'o has threatened not to pay Kisumu doctors on strike for failing to deliver services as required
• Kakamega governor Fernandes Barasa has also issued similar threats to medics boycotting work in his county
• Raila Odinga urged President William Ruto to resolve the doctors' strike and save ailing Kenyans from unwarranted pain and suffering

Kisumu governor Anyang' Nyong'o has ruled out disbursing salaries to doctors and other healthcare workers participating in the ongoing strike.

In a press statement dated Thursday, April 11, the governor announced that the county has plans to hire new medical staff at the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital (JOOTRH) on a short-term contract to fill the gap created by the doctors on strike.

The Kisumu county boss stated that the measures are intended to maintain smooth service delivery in the medical sector and safeguard the welfare of county residents.

"In accordance with the Labour Relations Act, health workers who have not been present at their designated workplace and have withdrawn their services will not be remunerated for the corresponding period, "he said.

He added that the county secretary and public service board have already been informed about the matter.

Kakamega governor threatens to sack striking doctors

In Kakamega, Governor Fernandes Barasa has threatened to sack striking doctors if they don't resume back to work.

" Any doctor who will not be found at their workstation will be sacked. The doctors are not indispensable," he said.

Barasa stated that services such as theatre, surgical procedures, and special clinics have been impacted due to the ongoing strike, leading to a significant decrease in the number of patients seeking care.

Raila asks Ruto to resolve doctors' strike

Earlier, Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition Party leader Raila Odinga called on President William Ruto to address the doctors' concerns urgently.

The opposition chief warned that the crisis in the health sector would worsen if other cadres, like clinical officers, joined the strike.

The former prime minister called on both the government and the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) to find a compromise solution to avert further suffering for Kenyans.

What you need to know about doctors' strike

• A video capturing a group of striking doctors in Nairobi offering unsolicited advice to students from Starehe Boys Center has caused a stir on social media.
• The Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists' Union (KMPDU) has dismissed the government's offer to post medical interns.
• President William Ruto asked doctors to call off strike said there is no money to pay them.

Proofreading by Jackson Otukho, a multimedia journalist and copy editor at TUKO.co.ke