Marsabit Health Crisis Deepens as Clinical Officers Protest Unpaid Salaries and Broken Promises

Marsabit County’s health system is on the brink of collapse as clinical officers continue their strike, now entering its fourth week, over unpaid salaries, lack of medical cover, and unfulfilled agreements. The industrial action has left hospitals deserted, patients unattended and frustration mounting among both medics and residents.

At Marsabit Referral Hospital, the silence is deafening; not due to recovery, but despair. Those meant to heal others are now struggling to survive. The Kenya Union of Clinical Officers (KUCO) Marsabit Branch Chairperson, Abdishukri Adan, says they have gone three months without pay, despite signing multiple return-to-work agreements that the County Government has failed to honor.

Adan revealed that statutory deductions have not been remitted for over 20 months and medical insurance for staff is nonexistent. “We’re only asking the county to keep its promises — pay us, promote us, and implement career progression guidelines,” he said.

The officers accuse the county administration of making empty pledges. KUCO Branch Secretary Daki Duba noted that they signed return-to-work deals in July last year and again in April 2025, yet none were implemented. He emphasized that they will not sign another until all demands are met, declaring, “Our patience has run out.”

Adding to the anguish, KUCO Treasurer Shukri Ibrahim shared heartbreaking stories of colleagues suffering due to the system’s failure. One officer, battling stage-four cancer in Garissa, hasn’t been paid since August and relies on colleagues’ fundraisers. Another in Laisamis is fighting tuberculosis without treatment.

Meanwhile, hospitals remain crippled by staff shortages and a lack of essential drugs, forcing desperate residents to seek care in neighboring counties. The medics say they are striking not out of defiance, but desperation; fighting for dignity, fairness, and survival.

The union is now appealing directly to Governor Mohamud Ali to take immediate action. They warn that if the situation persists, Marsabit’s health sector could grind to a total halt,  leaving the county’s most vulnerable without care and its healers without hope.