Cholera outbreak in two sub counties in Baringo county

Cholera outbreak has been witnessed in Marigat and Mogotio sub counties of Baringo county for the past four months.

Speaking to KNA yesterday at their office, health promotion officer in Baringo county Leah Cherutich confimed that it has been a great challenge to eradicate the outbreak in the two sub counties.

"The last patient in Marigat was discharged last Sunday while nine cases have been reported in Mogotio since then", Cherutich testified.

Cherutich added that 142 cases have been reported in the county since May this year and that all the ages from 0-99 have been affected.

However, most patients who recorded the highest percentage of 30-31% were ranging from 20 to 39 years, Cherutich said.

Cherutich cautioned that the discharged patients in Marigat is not a guarantee that the outbreak is over until fourteen days elapse.

"We have noted that most residents in the affected areas don't use pit latrines thus polluting the nearby rivers", Cherutich said.

Cherutich explained that residents in Mogotio depend on water from polluted river Molo for there consumption and has contributed to the spread of the disease.

Health officers are already in the affected areas to sensitise residents on the need to boil drinking water and practice hygiene to avert the epidemic, Cherutich attested.

Furthermore, Cherutich confirmed that the officers undertake contact tracing where they give out prophylaxis a preventive antibiotic to minimize the bacterial infection.

"We advice people to visit the hospital immediately once they notice any signs of cholera infections as loss of body fluids might lead to immature deaths", Cherutich cautioned.

Cherutich is now calling for a collective responsibility from all the citizens in the county in order to avert the outbreak which has hitted the county for the second round this year.

IDPs need safety from expected el nino rains

The county government of Baringo has been probed to salvage IDPs from the expected elnino rains during Mashujaa day celebration at Museum grounds in Kabarnet.

Hon. Richard Kampala prompted the government to complete the houses meant for the migrants in order to save them from elnino hiccups.

"The houses meant for the is still incomplete up to date", Kampala added.

Five hundred immigrants need to be given their rights like any other Kenyan in order to feel secured.

Hon. Jeniffer Kiptoo on the other hand urged the residents in Baringo county to harvest water during the expected elnino rains in order to solve the water scarcity problem in the region.

Why Baringo county executive members should be impeached

A letter was issued on 7th, Oct, to the office of Baringo county governor, Benjamin Cheboi prompting him to initiate removal proceedings against the county executive members.

Chairperson-Liaison committee, Baringo county assembly, Hon Douglas Tanui, in the letter notified the office to bring forth a show cause letter elucidating why removal proceedings may not be initiated against the county executive committee members.

Tanui highlighted that CEC's were contravening the provisions of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010 in Articles, 174, 183, 185 and 232 (1) and (2) by failure to implement the house resolutions which includes: Bills, motions, regulations, committee reports, subsidiary legislations and delay in the operationalization of enacted legislations upon gazettement.

There has been failure in initiating county legislations and policies and providing the county assembly with full and regular reports on matters relating to the county contrary to Article 183, Tanui noted.

Tanui added that accomplishment of county projects within the specified time frames in line with the provisions of the public finance management act leading to lapse of funds as enshrined in section 136(1) of the aforementioned Act thus resulting in Roll over Funding.

Family loses a mother and a boy child

A family in Baringo central is crying for justice following the lose of a baby and mother at Kabarnet district hospital due to negligence by the hospital resulting to excessive bleeding.

The 28 year old woman died while on transit to Moi teaching and referral, Jonathan Kamket, husband to the deceased said while in his residence in Buruburu estate in Kabarnet, today and admitted that the death of his wife is still raw and seeks to know why the hospital couldn't handle the situation.

Jonathan said they, arrived at the hospital with her wife on Friday, 9,Oct where his wife was told to wait in the waiting room. He left the hospital at 7am to prepare their first born daughter for school before going to workplace to request for a leave break.

Ivy Jebet having received a text from the deceased at  5 O' clock rushed to the hospital at 7 am where the doctors requested her to buy drugs for the patient. Jebet called the husband who brought the medicine.

To his disappointment, Jonathan said on his arrival, he found the doctors forcing his wife to climb on a raised surgical bed, he wanted to assist her but the nurses refused. His wife was taken to the caesarian unit.

Kamket and Jebet said that after an hour of waiting, a nurse told them that delivery was successful and a baby boy was born. No sooner were they relieved than a report came that the baby could not breath and had died, the remaining option was to save the mother from excessive bleeding.

Kamket received a report that the blood bank was dry thus there was emergency to seek for blood transfusion at Moi teaching and referral hospital in Eldoret. The engine was started at 11 O'clock but went off twice at Chepsigot and Chembulet before arriving at Eldoret, Kamket said.

Jebet said that the late Doris Keitany, younger sister to her mother breath her last at Kimumu before arriving at the hospital. Jebet added that the husband to the late couldn't bear with the situation an act that forced the doctor to silence him.

Responding to the incident, the health chief executive committee Baringo county, Moses Atuko, said that the deceased had low red blood cells thus couldn't allow a caeserin to be done. At the same time there were no blood for transfusion.

Atuko added that there were no cases of doctors' negligence as three doctors and one intern were there at the moment when the deceased arrived at the hospital. Atuko confrmed that there were no major issues in the hospital at the moment.

However, Atuko said that blood shortage is a national crisis due to systematic and donor issues. He said that recently secondary schools which proves to be the major blood donors were closed due to teachers' strike.

Blood is a being ingredient and thus there is need to expound on screening centres by opening up satellite units at county levels, Atuko said.

Kipngorom girls expected to hit in this year's KCSE examinations.

The principal Kipngorom girls secondary school, in Baringo county, Mrs. Pauline Kurere has higher expectation on this year's candidates despite the five week long strike.

Kurere said this yesterday during a brief visit to the school by the deputy county commissioner Baringo county, Mr. Okwanyo.

The school which is the center of excellence had its first time candidates top last year despite the fact that the school has no enough classrooms for learning.

Kurere added that they are forced to use the unfinished dining holes where two classes are combine and thought facing different direction thus encouraging disturbances in class.

Okwanyo while addressing the girls advised them to embrace team building in order to excel in exam. He gave an example of studying SMART in school as working hard is not a guarantee road to success.

Residents at Kipgorom plead for maternity room

Kipngorom residents yesterday requested the government to build a maternity room in there location in order to encourage hospital delivery in the area.

Elizabeth Sokome, a resident in the area said at a baraza attended by the deputy county commissioner in Baringo county, Mr Okwanyo, that most women  prefer traditional delivery done by the midwives as the neighbouring maternity wards are at a distant.

Sokome added that sick patients are carried on shoulders and through local arrangements due to poor transport system in the interior parts of the area where there are no vehicles which can access the area.

Kipngorom location in Mogotio division, is an extension of Mogotio sub-county at the border between Eldama Ravine and Tenges sub-counties. It is a semi-arid hilly area situated near the famous Perkerra river.

Due to its terrain, the area is prone to landslides thus people in Kapterit  sub location and Tiani village should vacate the Land to a safer place to avoid the menace during the expected elnino rains,Okwanyo advised. However, he said that elnino rains have also positive impacts such as increased harvest.

Among the present guests in the baraza were  Asst. County Commissioner Andrew Gavuredi Baringo, OCBD Mogotio sub-county Patrick Nyangaruso and Laban Shirandula DCIO, Mogotio sub- county

Relief teachers begin work immediately

Five hundred and thirty relief teachers got employed last week in various primary and secondary schools in Baringo county.

According to Teachers Service Commission chairman in Baringo county Mr. Alex Cheruiyot, 450 candidates were posted to primary schools while 80 were posted to secondary schools.

The director said that, eight hundred and ninety applications were received within a short time frame. He also noted that, there were over two hundred late applications were also rejected.

Marginalized areas were not left behind as six applicants were received from Tiaty sub-county though some of them didn't meet the requirements such as TSC numbers.

The lucky teachers were supposed to report immediately on Monday without induction. Mr. Cheruiyot said that the turn up was alarming as most people had termed the process as propaganda.