More county chiefs accept Sh38bn medical gear
What you need to know:
- President launched the equipment early this year.
- Governors soften stand and sign agreement on leasing of medical equipment.
More governors have softened their stand and signed the Sh38 billion medical equipment lease offered by national government.
From a list that the Ministry of Health e-mailed to newsrooms on Sunday, only eight governors are yet to sign the Memorandum of Understanding with the national government for the equipment that include X-ray, ultra sound, and dialysis machines.
The leasing deal will see two hospitals in each county receive the medical equipment, which is being financed by the national government over a seven-year period.
“We expect all the governors to sign the MoU by the end of this month,” the Director of Medical Services, Dr Nicholas Muraguri, told the Nation on Sunday.
The list indicates that only the governors of Meru, Mombasa, Bomet, Nyamira, Turkana, Kitui, Vihiga and Kwale were yet to sign the MoU. Dr Muraguri said Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho was set to sign the deal but he was out of the country.
“Governors of Mandera, Kakamega and Garissa have informed us that they have signed the document, which we are waiting to receive.”
In May, President Uhuru Kenyatta launched the refurbished Machakos Level 5 Hospital in which the new equipment had been installed.
‘MYSTERIOUS DEAL’
On Sunday, Dr Muraguri said the Head of State would do the same at four other Level 5 hospitals by the end of this month.
The hospitals are in Nakuru, Kakamega, Thika and Homa Bay.
The Council of Governors, which for a long time had opposed the agreement on the leasing of the equipment, has lately been warming to the deal, but it has maintained that the Auditor-General first scrutinises the procurement process which has been “shrouded in mystery”.
