Heartfelt letter to the governor of Kisumu County

Dear Mr. Governor:

Have you ever come across a saying that says, “A healthy society is a rich society?”  Well Mr. Governor your county is ailing a lot. There is nothing good in the health sector to smile about in Kisumu County. The health sector in Kisumu County is in a mess.

Let me take you back Mr. Governor. Do you remember the time you begged me to vote for you so that you could ascend to power? You promised to improve the health sector in Kisumu County. You promised to equip hospitals with resources, personnel and equipment. You promised women of Kisumu County to have safe deliveries in hospitals and no woman or child would die during birth. What happened Mr. Governor? Were all these lies? Were you only sweet talking us?

Women in Nyalenda B still don’t have access to a maternity ward. They are forced to walk for hours in order to find a place to deliver safely. It is estimated that over 30% of women in Kisumu County still don’t deliver in a health facility. Maternal mortality is still high in Kisumu County at 495 deaths per 100,000 births.

Teenage pregnancy in Kisumu County is also increasing. One out of four teenagers is usually pregnant in Kisumu County. Teenage pregnancy has killed dreams of many young girls in Kisumu County and no action has been taken.

Child marriage and child molestation in Kisumu County are also on the rise. Over 25% of children in Kisumu County have been subjected to sexual abuse. Mr. Governor Young people are the future of this country. In order to protect our future, we need to protect the young children of this county.

41% of women still don’t have access to family planning services. This has resulted to infections such as STDs and high cases of unintended pregnancy which leads to unsafe abortion.

Cases of unsafe abortion in Kisumu County are escalating. Unintended pregnancy is a major contributor to unsafe abortions in Kenya. It is estimated that 48 women out of 1000 women has had an abortion in Kisumu County. Unsafe abortion is one of the leading causes of maternal deaths in Kisumu County. Many people opt for unsafe abortion because they don’t know where to go to or seek help from when they want to terminate the pregnancy.

When it comes to the ratio between health personnel and the public, things are not good at all. The number of nurses per 100,000 people has reduced from 72 in 2012 to 27 in 2015. The number of doctors has also reduced from 19 per 100,000 people in 2012 to 15 in 2015. Clinical officers are also not left behind. Their numbers have reduced from 18 per 100,000 in 2012 to 15 in 2015.

Recently I saw your county making headlines in the newspaper. It is alleged that you took Sh178 million from the health sector and put the money to run the office of the governor. Surely Mr. Governor is this right? Has your office become more important than the health of poor residents of Kisumu County?

Article 43 of the new Kenyan constitution, adopted in 2010, states every citizen has the right to life, and the right to the highest attainable standard of health including reproductive health. Mr. Governor, the supreme law that governs this country should be followed to the latter.