Senator wants County government to sign for Sh38 billion medical kits

Vihiga Senator George Khaniri (in specs) arrives at the county assembly accompanied by Speaker Daniel Chitwah (R). Khaniri addressed the county assembly on Friday evening July 10, 2015 where he urged the county government to accept state of the art health equipment. [PHOTO: ERIC LUNGAI/STANDARD]

Senator George Khaniri has urged Governor Moses Akaranga to consider signing for medical equipment provided for lease by the national government to allow residents access better medical care.

Mr Khaniri said much as the county did not require all the equipment provided by the Government, it would be prudent if the governor identified those he needed for the benefit of the people.

The senator said the county's health sector was not satisfactory, and of great concern was that the major referral hospital in the region, Vihiga Hospital, has been receiving negative publicity.

"Healthcare is important to development because sick people are not productive and at times, the cost of seeking medical attention condemns families to poverty," said Khaniri.

He added, "I want the leadership of the county in conjunction with the assembly to identify what the hospitals need most so that we can save our people who have to travel long distances to seek healthcare services."

Governor Akaranga has maintained that he will not sign for the equipment because the Government's procurement procedures were questionable and that they had not provided technicians who will operate them in the counties.

"We have some of the equipment here which we have not been able to use up to now because they lack qualified personnel to operate. Also, the Government has failed to provide proper details about the equipment and their lease procedure," Mr Akaranga had said.

The senator spoke when he delivered his second annual address to the assembly on Friday.

He said the equipment was meant to ensure quality healthcare is accessible to the entire population and that people will get value for their taxes.

"Access to treatment for life threatening diseases such as cancer has turned to be a preserve of the rich who can afford treatment abroad," he noted.