Manyatta MP Gitonga Mukunji has called on Embu Governor Cecily Mbarire to stop blame game and fix the health crisis facing the County following the ongoing health workers strike that commenced on Monday.
The workers took the industrial action after the County Government failed to implement a court order with regard to their labour dispute, with leaders accusing the Governor of mismanaging the health sector to the detriment of residents’ a majority of whom entirely relied on public health facilities for health care.
MP Mukunji urged the Governor to end the political blame game after she accused certain political actors of spreading misinformation and exploiting health matters in pursuit of political interests in a post on her social media platforms.
Speaking on Thursday afternoon after inspecting the ongoing tarmacking of Kivwe-Kevote Road in his Constituency, Mukunji asked the County boss to obey the court directive in a bid to end patients suffering instead of taking head on those who are challenging her.
“The Governor has formed a habit of scapegoating instead of solving problems whenever they arise,” Mukunji said, adding that it was a calculated move by her to hoodwink voters by concealing her failures.
The stalled implementation of court order relates to a 2023 Employment and Labor Relations Court ruling that barred the County from engaging health workers on casual and short-term contracts, and directed that those in service be converted to permanent and pensionable terms.
County officials have cited budget constraints and ongoing consultations as reasons for the delay, but union officials say no concrete timeline has been given.
The strike, which began on Monday, has seen outpatient and maternity services in most public facilities shut down.
Meanwhile, Mukunji slammed Governor Mbarire for riding on National Government projects instead of focusing on her own projects.
Governor Mbarire has argued that those National Government projects being implemented across the county were as a result of intense lobbying by her administration.
However, Mukunji, stated that the Governor does not deserve credit for them since they are funded by national taxpayers and executed according to a centralized masterplan.
He said that these projects were allocated and funded by the National Assembly where he sits and as such it is the MPs who hold the power to pursue their implementation.
By Samuel Waiaitu
