NAKURU, Kenya, Oct 2 – Six Members of Parliament from Kiambu County have called for the national government to immediately assume control of the county’s collapsing health sector, accusing Governor Kimani Wamatangi of arrogance, intimidation, and presiding over a systemic collapse that is costing lives.
In a joint press statement delivered at Parliament Buildings, the lawmakers said the national government should take charge of Kiambu’s health docket until 2027, effectively stripping Governor Wamatangi of the function for the remainder of his term.
“When a devolved function becomes a threat to human life, the nation cannot look away,” said Lari MP Joseph Mburu Kahangara, who read the statement on behalf of his colleagues.
“The only realistic, life-saving path forward is for the national government to assume control of the county’s health function until 2027.”
The MPs John Kiragu (Limuru), John Kawanjiku (Kiambaa), Elijah Njoroge Kururia (Gatundu North), Alice Ng’ang’a (Thika Town), and Gathua Wamacukuru (Kabete) decried collapsed hospitals, abandoned patients, and a ballooning death toll that has left residents at the mercy of fate.
They cited the deterioration of Kiambu Level 5 Hospital and Thika Level 4 Hospital, once key referral centres, now described as shadows of their former selves with deserted wards, idle equipment, bare pharmacies and overwhelmed maternity units.
“It is now tragically common to see relatives wheeling their loved ones from one ward to another in search of help that never comes,” said Gatundu North MP Elijah Njoroge Kururia.
“Many families are forced to hire private ambulances to Nairobi, Machakos or Murang’a too often, patients collapse and die on the way.”
The crisis, the MPs said, stems from prolonged doctors’ strikes triggered by Governor Wamatangi’s alleged hardline stance, threats against unions, and refusal to negotiate. His approach prompted the withdrawal of 697 medical intern doctors from Kiambu facilities, while a new cohort was diverted to other counties amid claims of a toxic working environment.
“Those left behind nurses, clinical officers and support staff —are either on strike or working under intolerable conditions without support,” said Thika Town MP Alice Ng’ang’a.
The lawmakers cited devastating figures: at least 136 infants dead in neonatal and pediatric wards due to lack of care, and 20 mothers lost during childbirth or from preventable complications.
“These are not acts of fate but direct outcomes of failed governance,” stated Kabete MP Gathua Wamacukuru.
“Families are mourning loved ones not because disease was unstoppable, but because leadership chose coercion over conversation.”
They accused Governor Wamatangi of creating a leadership vacuum, replacing dialogue with diktats, cooperation with coercion, and humility with intransigence.
“This is not a failure born of poverty, but of pride,” they declared. “The county’s problem is not scarcity of resources, but arrogance in leadership.”
The MPs urged President William Ruto’s administration to invoke constitutional provisions allowing national intervention when counties fail to protect citizens.
“Healthcare is not a campaign slogan it is a constitutional right, a moral obligation, and a lifeline. In Kiambu, that lifeline has been severed,” the Lari lawmaker stated.
