Could doctors’ have mistaken President Uhuru’s silence for weakness?

President Uhuru Kenyatta for the last few weeks had been quite silent on the doctors’ strike issue; choosing to give advice behind the scenes to his Cabinet Secretary and other government officials involved in the active negotiations aimed at striking a deal. President Uhuru was quite strategic in his silence but could not hold his peace anymore and decided to speak out yesterday as he officially opened the devolution conference in Naivasha on Tuesday. The President seemed extremely perturbed by the biting doctors’ strike which today enters

President Uhuru was quite strategic in his silence but could not hold his peace anymore and decided to speak out on Tuesday as he officially opened the devolution conference in Naivasha. The President seemed extremely perturbed by the biting doctors’ strike which enters its 93rd day.

 His deviation from his main speech clearly expressed his anger with the demands for further negotiations terming the demands by doctors as outright blackmail that cannot be entertained. The President said that the government had greatly reviewed the salaries of the doctors and that the current salaries are more lucrative than those of their colleagues in the private sector.

The remarks by the President that “Kwani hii watu wanafikiria sisi ni wajinga namna gani?’’ drew a lot of reaction from tweeps on twitter with many arguing that the government also needs to improve the state of public health facilities besides the salary increment.

 The current talks between the KMPDU officials and the religious leaders are yet to yield any fruit; since no substantive information has been released about the ongoing negotiations.

It is crystal-clear both sides have a hardline stance and as the stalemate continues, the common mwananchi; the grass that suffers when two bulls are fighting still suffers with lack of healthcare.