The national government is now blaming county governments for the increased cases of mental health in the country.
Health Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha says the devolved units have shown laxity in managing the increasing cases.
Nakhumicha says that despite the Mental Health Amendment Act outlining a complementary role between the National Government and the counties in response to mental cases, counties have failed to play their part.
She noted that counties have lagged behind in terms of prevention and care of mental health cases.
“In my recent visit to the field I have discovered that they are not quite there in terms of service delivery and therefore it takes joint effort between the National Government and the counties to provide the much-needed services,” Nakhumicha noted.
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Speaking when she appeared before the National Assembly Health committee, Nakhumicha mentioned that the ministry’s hands are tied in managing the increased of mental issues.
“The counties are mandated with service delivery while we are mandated with technical assistance to provide guidelines and policy. There is a thin line for us to go policing the counties to know where they are doing what they are supposed to or not,” Nakhumicha stated.
The committee is pushing for the Ministry of Health to take an active role in curbing mental health issues, arguing that the devolved units have failed in their mandate.
Seme MP James Nyikal argued that Article 189 of the constitution provides that the national government is obligated to help the devolved units in the event they fail in their mandate.
