The
wrangles between the central and county governments could deal a blow to
fighting against COVID-19 in Kenya. This is after the two parties sharply
differed on who should recruit the medics.
Recently,
the Council of Governors chair Mr. Wycliffe Oparanya ordered the Health CS
Mutahi Kagwe, and the Public Service Commission (PSC) chair Mr. Stephen kirogo
to suspend the exercise and let the counties undertake it.
Through the
letter, governor Oparanya pointed an accusing finger to the national government
for violating the law, which allowed the counties to hire medical staff.
"It is
important to note that under Schedule Four of the Constitution, health is a
devolved function and recruitment of such staff can only be undertaken by the
county public service boards," stated part of the letter.
A week ago,
PSC placed an advert for 5,500 posts for health recruits on a contract basis.
This was in an attempt to step up the fight against the global COVID-19
pandemic.
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Yesterday,
H.E Oparanya vowed not to watch the national government perform a duty that was
meant for county governments. PSC had intended to hire medics for a duration of
three years, as stated on their website.
The
targeted lot included laboratory technicians, public health officers, clinical
officers, radiographers, community health workers, nurses, and pharmaceutical
technologists.
The Cabinet
Secretary for Public Service Ms. Margaret Kobia has said that this is not the
right time to fight over who should do what. PSC only meant to quicken the
process, and once the online applications are received, they were to be sent to
counties for recruitment purposes based on the needs of counties.
The doctors
expressed their disappointment with the advert by the PSC. They [doctors]
claimed that the advert had locked professional doctors out.
The Kenya
Medical Practitioners and Dentist Union (KMPDU) stated that there were about
1,000 jobless medics in their database, and who had been left out.
KMPDU chair
Samuel Oroko stated that this was not the best time to wage war, but to
increase in the fight against the global pandemic. However, he said that
doctors should also have been included in the recruitment list.
