Meru Governor Peter Munya with health workers in the county.
BY SAM ALAN.
Meru County Government has resolved the issues raised by the health workers in the county after a successful meeting between Governor Peter Munya and the Health workers’ Union leaders at His office in Meru town.
The two parties agreed to form a task force to look at the issues and give a report in three months.
The county government and the unions maintained their hardline stands as workers strike entered its third day Thursday.
This is despite county government and the unions maintained their hardline stands last week.
Last week Health Secretary William Muraah says the four unions representing the 1,600 medics did not serve them with strike notices on August 17.
Governor Peter Munya responded: “We have absolutely no information on why the workers are on strike because we had paid all salaries by September 1.”
However, copies of strike notice letters produced by the union’s show they were served to the officers of Chief Officer of Health, County Secretary and the County Public Service Board (CPSB). Despite the revelation, the county government will not budge. “A stamp does not necessarily mean that the letter was received at the office and we challenge anyone to prove otherwise,” Dr Muraah said. Munya said the county was relying on the media to know what the medics’ grievances are. See also: Nyeri County plans to sack nurses if they fail to resume duty But Kenya Clinical Officers Association Meru branch chairman Wilson Namu said the county officials were being dishonest because the notices were hand delivered and acknowledged by stamping. Other unions whose members are participating in the industrial action are the Kenya National Union of Nurses, the Association of Medical Lab Officers and the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentist Union.
The accused the county government of failing to manage the human resource in the health sector. They have more than 10 grievances. Determined not to lose in the war of words, the county administration alleged that corruption cartels that had a stranglehold in the sector are fighting back through the unions, especially after an audit at the Meru Teaching and Referral Hospital discovered massive fraud and waste of public resources. “We are investigating some officers after claims of a Sh3 million fraud on the National Hospital Insurance Fund was unearthed,” said Munya. He said daily collections at the hospital had hit Sh300,000 and projections were that a staggering Sh6 million was previously being lost every month.
