Re-emergence of polio, leprosy worrying

Besides ongoing strikes by medical personnel, there must be something fundamentally wrong with the medical services in this country. The re-emergence of diseases that until recently had been presumed eradicated should be enough cause for worry.

At the Coast, particularly, at least 50 cases of leprosy are reported annually, yet the disease can be controlled through immunisation.

It does not help that babies born in the regions known more for poverty, ignorance and poor sanitation are not receiving mandatory vaccinations because there are no nurses to administer them as the national and county governments pass the bucket.

Other diseases making a comeback include elephantiasis, polio and malaria which has, in recent days, caused untold suffering and deaths in the Northern parts of Kenya where Government reach is not something to talk about.

A healthy population is critical to development. When diseases ravage large populations of the country forcing the Government to spend more on contingency and curative measures, it is always at the cost of something more worthwhile.

Underlying problems in the ministry of health that expose Kenyans to avoidable dangers need to be addressed now, rather than later when it might be too late.

It is unfortunate that those who should be the people’s recourse for solutions are immersed in politics at the expense and detriment of other sectors of the society.