Gov’t officials Issue Multiple Statements, Rubbish Catholic Bishops Statement on SHIF, CBC and Police Killings
Gov’t Officials Issue Multiple Statements countering the statement by the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops, saying its erroneous and misleading to the public.
Statements were released by Cabinet Secretaries of Health, Deborah Mulongo, her Education counterpart, Migos Ogamba and IG Douglas Kanja blaming the bishops for disregarding significant progress made by the government.
CS Barasa Stated,”The Government takes great exception to the misleading, erroneous and false statement issued by Catholic Church Bishops on obligations owed by the Government through the defunct NHIF. As of 4th October 2024, the defunct NHIF owed Ksh.19B to various healthcare providers, debts accrued over a period of more than 10 years.”
She added, “The Government is fully committed to settling these historical debts and consequently in the last month, Ksh. 7.58 billion was mobilised to pay these debts,”
CS Ogamba stated,”The introduction of the Student-Centred Funding Model followed recommendations by the Working Party. Since it was rolled out in 2023, the model has eased the financial burden in universities, which had been indebted to the tune of Ksh 70 billion, with many technically insolvent,”
“The merits of CBC and its structure have been subjected to extensive stakeholder consultation and public participation. These included the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops, who participated in the work of the Presidential Working Party on Education Reforms,”He added.
IG Kanja Wrote,”NPS recorded 495 injuries to police officers, 347 injuries to civilians, 42 civilian fatalities, and 69 cases of serious damage to government vehicles. In addition, there were 57 reported cases of missing persons, of which 22 were found alive,6 were found dead while 29 are still unaccounted for and serious efforts by police are underway to trace them. During the protests, NPS made 1552 arrests countrywide,”
“In response to the current prevalent murder of women witnessed in the country, we have recorded 97 deaths in the past three months. In most of the cases reported, we have effectively investigated, identified the culprits and arraigned them before the court.”
“All cases of deaths where police officers were implicated have been taken over by the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) and we are collaborating with IPOA and DPP in these investigations. All cases of abductions are being investigated by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations and we are making good progress in that direction,” he added.
Senate Majority Leader Aaron Cheruiyot Responded,”It is unfortunate that religious leaders are resorting to sweeping generalities. If they have an issue with an individual leader, they should seek redress through the relevant constitutional agencies instead of condemning the entire legislature…”
His National Assembly counterpart Kimani Ichung’wah said, “The drafter of this statement is portraying you either as liars or as politically partisan people seeking to play to a political gallery.”
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