Huduma Centres and various government offices could be forced to shut down indefinitely from Tuesday next week as civil servants and doctors threaten to go on strike over unresolved grievances.
The Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) Secretary General, Davji Atellah, announced that doctors and civil servants are set to down their tools on Tuesday, March 18, if their demands are not met.
“If these issues remain unresolved, we won’t just limit ourselves to demonstrations and protests. We will proceed with a full-scale strike starting on March 18, which will involve all doctors and civil servants across the country,” Atellah stated firmly.
He emphasized that unless the government meets their demands before the deadline, workers will serve a strike notice on the same day and immediately begin an industrial action that could paralyze government operations.
The Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) and the Union of Kenya Civil Servants (UKCS) have jointly pushed for the reinstatement of the Public Officers Medical Fund (POMF).
The fund, which falls under the Social Health Authority (SHA), was designed to provide comprehensive medical coverage for public servants and their dependents, offering benefits beyond the standard social health insurance package.
The unions are demanding the restoration of this medical scheme, as well as accountability regarding the 2.75% deductions from their salaries meant to cater for their health insurance.
“Access to healthcare for doctors, civil servants, and public servants is a fundamental right. We are not asking for free healthcare; we are simply demanding access to services that we have already been paying for through deductions from our salaries,” Atellah explained on Friday.
Currently, medical professionals reportedly pay between Ksh6,000 and Ksh9,000 for healthcare services, a cost that the unions argue is unfair given the contributions already being deducted from their earnings.
To push their demands further, doctors and civil servants plan to stage a massive demonstration on Tuesday, marching from Kenyatta National Hospital to the Social Health Authority headquarters in Upper Hill, where they will officially present their petition.
The group also intends to take their protest to the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Public Service, and the National Treasury to ensure their grievances are heard.
“The inefficiencies in running government institutions are not our concern as workers. Our duty is to serve the public as per our training, and in return, we expect fair treatment,” Atellah stated.
He further warned that the strike could lead to the closure of Huduma Centres and other crucial government offices, as many workers will be forced to choose between continuing to work under poor conditions or taking to the streets to demand their rights.
“We expect Huduma Centres to shut down. We expect various government offices to close. Workers have to decide whether they will continue working under conditions where they are undervalued and unappreciated or step out to demand what is rightfully theirs—the ability to access healthcare for themselves and their families,” KMPDU reiterated.
With the strike looming, thousands of Kenyans who rely on government services may face disruptions, adding pressure on the government to act swiftly before the deadline.
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