Clergy demand resignation of 3 CSs as Kenya faces multiple crises

A section of the clergy has demanded the immediate resignation of three members of President William Ruto's cabinet over what they term incompetence and an inability to execute their roles.

The National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK) wants Health Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha to step aside for failing to resolve a crisis that has seen medics strike for three weeks so far.

The NCCK accused Nakhumicha of not offering any meaningful solutions to end the industrial action by doctors, clinical officers and laboratory officers, which has left the public without access to crucial services.

Health Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha during a meeting at Afya House in Nairobi on March 28, 2024. (Photo: Health ministry)

It also wants cabinet secretaries Mithika Linturi (Agriculture) and Kipchumba Murkomen (Transport) to resign or be compelled to leave office after the fake fertiliser scandal and increased road accidents, respectively.

The NCCK's Nairobi region chairman, Alphonse Kanga, said on Wednesday that the untold suffering and agony patients are witnessing in hospitals is enough reason for Nakhumicha to step down.

"In some countries, if one person dies because something has gone wrong, he or she either fixes the problem or steps down. It is that simple," Kanga said.

"It is not the people of my calibre who are suffering. A bishop can afford to go to [the private] Aga Khan Hospital, for instance, but that grandmother in the village cannot afford that so we want the President to talk about this, solve the problem and let people live well in this nation."

CS Nakhumicha and the government have urged the striking health workers to return to the negotiating table but their offers so far have been rejected by the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Union (KMPDU), and others, which say all their demands must be met to prevent a recurrence of issues.

The CS says the issues go beyond the Health ministry, involving multiple stakeholders who must all come together to address them to prevent Kenyans from suffering any further.

Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mithika Linturi addresses the public during a tour of the Nakuru County depot of the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) on March 26, 2024. (Photo: Agriculture ministry)

Kanga accused Linturi of not being clear about the fake fertiliser scandal that followed a subsidy programme by the government.

"The fertiliser was distributed within systems that exist. They know the storekeepers and how it was transported and must be accountable," he said.

On March 20, the Senate said it had summoned Linturi, Trade minister Rebecca Miano (Trade), and officials of the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) over the transgression that has seen farmers across the country lose money.

Thus far, Linturi has refuted claims that the state issued the poor quality product and asked farmers not to believe hearsay around the issue, alleging a plot to negatively portray Ruto's Kenya Kwanza government. He notes that government fertiliser is scientifically tested and approved before being circulated to Kenyan farmers.

Transport minister Kipchumba Murkomen during a meeting on March 27, 2024. (Photo: X/Kipchumba Murkomen)

Regarding road crashes, the religious leader says Murkomen has a lot to do to bring about change.

"The rate of accidents in Kenya can be measured by the rate of corruption. We must have consolidated efforts by the police, the [National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA), and everybody else concerned because these accidents show that things have gone out of hand," he said.

President Ruto has not yet issued statements, even as pressure mounts for the government to take decisive action.