Family postpones burial after Governor Kihika fails to clear hospital bill

Nakuru Governor Susan Kihika before the Senate Health Committee on May 17, 2024, over the closure of Nakuru War Memorial Hospital. [Boniface Okendo, Standard] A family in Naivasha has been forced to postpone the burial of their kin at the last minute after Nakuru Governor Susan Kihika failed to clear a hospital bill she had promised to settle. As a result, the family of the late boda boda driver Francis Kamau has turned to members of the public for support so that they can raise the Sh0.8m pending bill. Last week, while on a tour of Naivasha, the family and boda boda operators approached the governor, who publicly announced that she would assist in clearing the bill. "From the records, SHA has accepted to pay over Sh200,000 and I will make sure that the rest is paid so that this man can be given a decent send-off," said Kihika, leading to songs of joy. According to the Chairman of Naivasha boda boda operators, John Gitonga, soon after the promise, the family and friends embarked on burial preparations in Tetu, Nyeri. He said that the deceased had been admitted to Kenyatta University Referral Hospital, where the bill rose to over Sh800,000 before he died last month. "The deceased is an orphan and his family could not raise the bill, and when we approached the Governor she promised to settle it, so burial plans began," he said. Gitonga added that efforts to reach out to the Governor had been fruitless, forcing them to postpone the burial and seek ways of raising funds to settle the bill. On her part, Margaret Wangari, the wife of the deceased, spoke of their agony after the burial was postponed at the last minute due to the pending bill. She said that Kamau started complaining of stomach ache three months ago and was treated in different hospitals before succumbing last month. "The body has been lying in the mortuary until the Governor promised to clear the bill, but she has not kept her promise and we are back to suffering," she said amid tears. An uncle to the deceased, Michael Irungu, called on politicians to stop playing to the gallery as families were undergoing untold suffering. "We started burial arrangements soon after we were promised that the bill would be settled, but this has turned out to be another fake promise," he said. A senior officer from the county, however, defended the Governor, saying that the family did not involve them in the burial plans, though they had written a letter to the hospital seeking a waiver of the bill. "Part of the bill was paid by SHA and we are working with the hospital so that the pending bill can be waived and the family can continue with the burial," said the officer, who declined to be named.

Family postpones burial after Governor Kihika fails to clear hospital bill

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Family postpones burial after Governor Kihika fails to clear hospital bill

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