Kirinyaga Governor Waiguru Faces Legal Action Over Court Defiance

Kirinyaga — The Kenya Union of Clinical Officers (KUCO) has called for the arrest of Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru for failing to comply with court orders mandating the reinstatement of 49 clinical officers dismissed in 2019.

KUCO Chairperson Peterson Wachira and Secretary General George Gibore accused Governor Waiguru of contempt of court, citing her refusal to honor two return-to-work directives issued by the court and the Public Service Commission (PSC).

“It must be noted that this is the third time we are here, and there are no court orders staying the enforcement of the PSC directive reinstating all dismissed clinical officers,” Gibore stated.

The officers, previously stationed at Kerugoya Referral Hospital, Kimbimbi, Kianyaga, Sagana, and other health facilities, were among 200 health practitioners dismissed after demanding unpaid salaries. Their 2019 dismissal followed a prolonged strike that led the governor to make good on her threat to fire them.

Despite efforts by KUCO, the PSC, and court interventions over the past six years, the officers remain unemployed. During a press briefing, Wachira warned that failure to reinstate the officers would result in a county-wide health workers’ strike starting Monday.

“We will shut down health facilities because the employer is playing hide and seek,” Wachira warned, accusing Waiguru of using delay tactics during negotiations, only to backtrack once strikes ended.

Wachira urged the governor to obey the court orders before completing her final term. “She has fought this for six years. She should now do the needful by reinstating the officers,” he added.

KUCO signed a return-to-work formula with the Council of Governors on July 8, 2024, and with the Ministry of Health on July 22, 2024, but the impasse in Kirinyaga remains unresolved.