Health workers threaten to leave Mandera after Al-Shabaab attack

Some of the 45 health workers who converged at Mandera Referral Hospital on November 24, 2014. They accused the government of not providing adequate security at health facilities in Mandera. Over 80 health workers have booked flights out of Mandera fearing for their lives. They have threatened to abandon their workstations due to insecurity. PHOTO | MANASE OTSIALO | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • This comes two days after Al-Shabaab militants attacked a Nairobi-bound bus and killed 28 people.
  • The workers met Monday and said they had written to the Mandera County Health department over their concerns.
  • A clinical officer in charge of the expected exit said the Mandera County government has abandoned though the county is their current employer.
  • Mandera County executive for Health Hassan Eymoy said plans were under way to have security provided in health facilities within the county.

Health workers stationed in Mandera County have threatened to abandon their workstations due to insecurity.

The warning comes two days after Al-Shabaab militants attacked a Nairobi-bound bus and killed 28 people.

The health workers at Mandera Referral Hospital said they feared for their lives and claimed the county government had abandoned them.

The workers met Monday at the hospital and said they had written to the Mandera County Health department about their concerns.

More than 50 health workers converged Monday morning at the hospital to plan for their exit from the county.

A clinical officer in charge of the expected exit who requested anonymity for security reasons said the Mandera County government had abandoned them though the county is their current employer after the devolution of health services.

'NO COMMUNICATION'

"We are meeting here in remembrance of our two departed colleagues, Denis Biese and Morris Kilonzo, and we have handed a letter to the county health administration in which we want them to assure us of our security before we report back,” said the clinical officer.

He said since Saturday’s massacre in which 28 people were killed, including a clinical officer and a pharmacist, no communication has been made to them by the Mandera County government and that most health workers at various health facilities in the county had reported incidents of intimidation from locals.

“There is no security in hospitals and this is why we are saying we are going back home to our counties till we are assured of security,” he said.

He said the county government had failed to house the health workers within the health facilities’ compounds.

He added that most of those who had rented houses outside the hospital premises are always at risk when either coming to work or going home.

SECURITY PLANS

“We are now making arrangements to fly to Nairobi and report back to the Ministry of Health asking for redeployment either to other safer counties or to our own counties,” said the health officer.

Speaking separately, Mandera County executive for Health Hassan Eymoy said plans were under way to have security provided in health facilities within the county.

He added that they were talking with the county security committee on the matter.

“Security is not our responsibility and we are engaging the national government through the county security committee and we had a meeting yesterday in which we were assured that all is going to be fine,” said Mr Eymoy.

He appealed to the health workers not to be in a hurry to leave the county, adding that doing so would send the wrong signal of victory to the perpetrators of the Saturday’s dawn attack.

NOT GOING BACK

“We are asking our health workers to stay around and offer services to our people because we all belong to one country, Kenya, and there is nothing like the attackers targeting a certain religion or a group of people,” he said.

Emily Omache, a clinical officer in Mandera, said she was leaving and doubted she would go back to Mandera.

“I have packed all my belongings and am ready to go once the plane lands here and I don’t even care about my salary,” said Ms Omache.

She said her family had been extremely worried since Saturday’s incident and that for the four months she has worked in Mandera she has lost interest in working outside her home county of Kisii.

Four Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE) teachers, Phyllis Nyaga, Cate Mugo, Gladys Njue and Evelyn Wanjiru, who were still in Mandera and were planning to fly out together with the health workers, said if it were not for the college assignments that they still had to finish, they would also have perished on Saturday.

'NOT WORTHY MY LIFE'

“We had plans to travel together with two of our colleagues, Peterson Mugendi and Geofrey Mureithi, who were both killed, but we decided to attend classes at (the) Mandera District Centre of Early Childhood Education, since we are doing a diploma course there,” said Ms Njue.

“I am not coming back to Mandera and I have let go the fees that I had paid at the college because it is not worthy my life,” said Ms Wanjiru.

"Everywhere I go I am not free because the locals have told me that that (attack) is just the beginning and advised me not to use the roads when travelling to Nairobi,” said Ms Nyaga.