NAIROBI, Mac 20 (NNN-KBC) – Kenyan doctors have sustained their work boycott across the country, as the industrial action entered its sixth day yesterday.
The health workers started the boycott on Mac 14, accusing the government of failing to address their grievances, including a demand to post 4,000 interns to medical facilities.
Kenya Medical Practitioners Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) Secretary-General, Davji Atellah, said that, they would not call off the strike until their issues are addressed.
Susan Nakhumicha, cabinet secretary for the Ministry of Health, said that, the government is working to address the doctors’ demands.
“I applaud our doctors and all health care workers, who have continued to deliver services to the people, as the Ministry of Health and the relevant stakeholders work together to address the issues raised by their union,” Nakhumicha said in a statement, after visiting key public health facilities in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi.
She said, citizens could continue to seek treatment in public facilities, assuring them that healthcare workers would be available and ready to serve them.
Jacob Okumu, a patient in Kisumu, western Kenya, said, “This is the second day I have visited our main public hospital, without receiving any help because of the doctors’ strike. The government should resolve the issue.”– NNN-KBC
