Kenya Medical Practitioners Pharmacist and Dentists Union (KMPDU) have rejected Ksh.2.4 billion offer for interns by the government.
In a statement on April 3, 2024, KMPDU said their absence on the negotiating table despite furtive efforts to address the pertinent and perennial problems that have plagued the nation’s health discredits the entire process.
“We issue this statement to decline the internship proposals and express our deep dissatisfaction with the press release circular titled ‘Status of The Court Sanctioned Mediation of The Industrial Action by KMPDU’, dated on the 2nd of April 2024 by the Head of Public Service/The-Whole-of-the-Nation Approach Committee on Health Sector,” KMPDU said in a statement.
On April 2, 2024, Chief of Staff and Head of Public Service Felix Koskei said the government secured the requisite budgetary support in the amount of Ksh2.4 billion to facilitate the immediate deployment and posting of the 2023/24 cohort of medical student interns.
“In that regard, all eligible medical student interns are urged to collect their posting letters from the Ministry of Health’s offices with effect from Thursday, 4th April 2024,” Koskei explained.
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KMPDU Rejects Government Deal
KMPDU argued that medical interns are the backbone of our country’s healthcare system and make up to 30% of our nation’s health workforce who should not be referred as medical student interns.
“They are Bonafide members of our union with their remuneration stipulated within the 2017 Collective Bargaining Agreement between our union, and the Ministry of Health,” read part of the statement.
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“Contravening the Collective Bargaining Agreement and subjecting our healthcare workers to a 70-91% pay cut is unlawful, punitive, and a gross violation of the global, regional, and national labor laws that govern employment in our country.”
The union insisted that they will not pick the internship offer letters until their demands are met and the CBA is upheld.
“Therefore, we reiterate that until our demands are met, and the 2017 CBA implemented, the letters mentioned above will not be picked, and will be treated with the contempt and deference they deserve,” the union further said.
However, the doctors stated that they remain open to bipartisan talks and negotiations on the health crisis that has brought the nation to a standstill and touches on every Kenyan.
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Doctors not Ready to Down Their Tools
KMPDU secretary general Dr. Davji Atellah in an interview emphasized that the strike will be on until the government is ready to sit and negotiate.
“We are asking for the government to employ 10,000 doctors in 5 years. When we are on strike, it is for the public to benefit, that the waiting time that they are having in the hospitals needs to be reduced,” he said.
“It will be until they implement what we are demanding. They may fire all the doctors, shoot all of them, clobber all of them but until these things are implemented, no one will go to work.”
Contrary to this, Health Principal Sectary Mary Muthoni issued a statement on April 4, urging all medical interns to collect their internship letters and report to their respective stations within the next 7 days.
