Kisumu Governor Jack Ranguma has denied slashing the county health budget allocation in the financial year 2016/2017.
Ranguma indicated that the budget making process for the FY 2016/2017 is still ongoing and that the budget figures have neither reached his office nor the cabinet for necessary adjustments before they are tabled in the county assembly for approval.
"We are talking about the Kisumu people’s budget whose making is participatory - not the governor’s budget. It is in the interest of the governor to ensure the budget remains for the people. And that it is premature, irresponsible and malicious for someone to report on a half-baked budget estimates is the least to describe the act," he said.
As the chairman of the Council of Governor’s Committee of Health, Ranguma said Kisumu County must set the pace in as far as health service delivery is concerned, adding that since he came into office in 2013, he has given health sector the first priority through adequate funding.
"Health has been getting the lion’s share of the budget. I have no intention of slashing the funding whatsoever," he said.
Ranguma outlined the strides he has made ever since he came into office in regards to health service delivery some of them including a fully equipped Intensive care Unit (ICU) system at Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital (JOOTRH) and recruited 700 health workers to beef up health service delivery.
Ranguma said that he has purchased eight ambulances stationed in sub county hospitals within the county, constructed a maternity wing at Kombewa Sub County Hospital and upgrading of over 40 existing health facilities in all the seven sub counties to ease congestion at JOOTRH, among other initiatives.
"I have ensured sanity within the health sector in Kisumu through proper remunerations and promotions. Unlike other counties, Kisumu has never witnessed any strike among the health workers and just recently, I promoted 800 health workers from job group 'H' to as far as job group 'N' with salary attached," he said.