Mokoro queries Kisii County’s delayed health plan

The Kisii County Assembly deputy Speaker has questioned the slow pace of the county in implementing a health scheme for the elderly.

Evans Mokoro told Nation.co.ke that the programme was supposed to start in March 2015 after the House passed a bill on it but close to two years it is still not in place.

At least Sh40 million was set aside to kick-start the programme, Mr Mokoro said.

He said elderly people and vulnerable groups were to be enrolled from each of the nine sub-counties to benefit from the scheme.

The scheme was also approved by Governor James Ongwae, who has openly been flaunting it as one of his key achievements.

On Wednesday, Mr Mokoro questioned why the programme was yet to take off even after money had been set aside for it.

“We are worried [about] what became of it because no elderly person from any of the wards has benefited from the said funds,” he said.

He said the governor was yet to make a firm commitment to the programme despite making promises about it.

PASSED INTO LAW

The health scheme was to work alongside the National Health Insurance Fund and was encapsulated in the National Insurance Health Fund Support Bill passed into law by MCAs in March 2015.

House Speaker Kerosi Ondieki, while presenting the bill to the governor for his signature, said a committee had been formed to identify the right people who were to benefit.

At least 800 aged people were to be picked from each of the nine sub-counties as beneficiaries of the scheme.

Among other things, the bill had proposed the establishment of a Sub-County Social Protection Committee comprising five members to oversee its implementation.

Mr Mokoro said no single part of the bill has been implemented to date, two years down the line.

“The elderly are anxiously awaiting to see when the bill [is] to be implemented so that they can live decent lives,” he said.

COUNTY COMMITMENT QUESTIONED

The Deputy Speaker further questioned the county’s commitment to releasing funds meant for farmers’ subsidies in the last financial year.

“We had set aside about Sh15 million meant for the programme, but to date even as we have moved to another financial year, no farmer has received any seeds and fertilizer,” Mr Mokoro said.

He accused the executive of being dodgy about the scheme.

“Farmers are querying because they were promised. They are right when asking for answers on this and the executive should come out in the open and tell us where the money is or what became of the programme,” he said.