Give us medical cover, guards tell employers

Security guards want a medical cover and life insurance amid rising incidence of injuries and death in attacks.

Apart from KK Security, which has a medical cover for some of its staff, other security firms have no such scheme, Kenya National Private Security Workers' Union (KNPSWU) officials said.

The priority, according to the union's Secretary General Isaac Andabwa, should be a medical cover for injured guards. The official said rarely does a week pass without a guard being injured or killed across the country with Nairobi, Mombasa, Kakamega, Eldoret and Kisumu being hotspots.

He made the appeal after visiting two G4S guards at Nairobi West Hospital where they have been admitted for the last one month after being seriously injured during the Garissa University attack on April 2 where 148 people were killed, including six security officers.

Abdullahi Hussein Din and Yussuf Mahamud were flown to Nairobi for specialised treatment before being discharged last week on Wednesday and taken back to Garissa.

G4S safety officer Clement Lelei declined to give more information on the guards.