Economy

Governors deny receiving funds to pay doctors

mailu

Health secretary Cleopa Mailu. FILE PHOTO | NMG

Governors are locked in a row with the national government over the release of cash to pay allowances for doctors, nurses and clinical officers, with the county chiefs denying receiving the money.

The Council of Governors (CoG) said Tuesday the government is being dishonest by insisting they have wired the cash to counties.

CoG chief executive Jacqueline Mogeni challenged Health secretary Cleopa Mailu to make public the schedule of disbursements to the counties.

“County governments have not received any funds to pay nurses, doctors, clinical officers and other health professionals,” she said in a statement.

“CoG seeks to know from Health secretary under what provisions of the law did the ministry purport to disburse the monies to the county governments without the Senate’s approval.”

Dr Mailu on Tuesday issued a public notice indicating Sh3.2 billion had been released to the counties including Kiambu (Sh184 million), Nairobi (Sh175 million), Kisumu (Sh112 million) and Machakos (Sh110 million).

The new perks were agreed after a three-month strike by the medics in a deal that also outlined a promotion plan.

The doctors went on strike from December 5 to March 14 demanding a 2013 agreement be effected to give them a 150 to 180 per cent pay raise.

The CoG last week appealed to the Senate, which is set to resume its sittings in June, to reconsider convening urgently as a matter of national interest to approve the allocations.

The national government had pledged to allocate counties the counties funds to pay for the allowances awarded to health personnel for six months between January to June.

Counties owe nurses, clinical officers including other health workers Sh1.6 billion and doctors Sh1.5 billion in allowances.