NAIROBI, Friday 15, 2019, GPS
Nairobi City Governor Mike Sonko has struck a deal with health workers in the County over their pending promotions.
The workers who were addressed by the Governor outside City Hall agreed to take letters for the first phase of promotion as the county factors in the next phase of promotion in the supplementary budget.
The County on Tuesday promoted 2,153 health workers who will all be served with promotion letters by Monday evening.
By Friday afternoon 1,050 letters had already been signed and given to health workers by the Nairobi Public Service Board.
The nurses and clinical officers through their union were pushing for promotion by four categories up, but Governor Sonko called for understanding because that was not factored in the 2019/20 budget.
“We have to follow the law and we can only promise what we can give anything else has to be factored in the budget,” Sonko told the health workers.
The County has set aside Sh130 million for the promotions in the current financial year. Sh99 million is already available.
The Governor revealed that the County Assembly’s Budget and Appropriations Committee has already retreated to Mombasa to work on the supplementary budget.
“I don’t want to do public relations with issues to do with health and that is why I am pleading that we wait until when everything is captured in the budget then we can talk about other terms,” added Sonko while addressing the health workers who had camped outside City Hall.
The Chairman of the Public Service Board Mohamed Abdikadir attributed the delay in issuing of promotion letters to the dynamics revolving around officers who have to be designated.
“The delay has not been occasioned by the promotions but it’s the designations that need a lot of time because we have to look at qualifications and suitability of such officers in relation to the new designation,” said Abdikadir.
The chairman promised to ensure that all letters are ready and dispatched to the rightful owners latest Monday evening next week.
Tom Nyakaba the Nairobi branch secretary for Kenya Union of Clinical Officers said the nurses were ready to resume work upon assurance that their demands are met as agreed before by the county. His sentiments were supported by Ediah Muruli the Branch secretary Kenya National Union of Nurses.
“Our people are ready to resume work as long as they have the assurance on the way forward and that their grievances will be implemented,” stated Nyakaba.
The two union leaders agreed to set up a meeting with the Nairobi Public Service Board, County Secretary Leboo Ole Morintat and the acting Health Executive Vesca Kagongo to chat the way forward on the next phase of promotion.