Medics march during a nationwide strike by doctors and nurses, in Nairobi, capital of Kenya. Photo Credit: Allan Mutiso/Xinhau.
The arrest of leaders of agitating doctors in Kenya has been ordered by a court in Nairobi, the country’s capital.
The court order is being issued after leaders of the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) skipped a court hearing after being found guilty of contempt.
The Capital FM reported that the Employment and Labour Relations Court directed the officer in charge of Kilimani Police Station to go ahead with the arrest warrants.
The local media reported that the leaders of the doctors’ union failed to appear in court on Tuesday for sentencing, for defying a court order preventing them from embarking on strike.
The doctors are currently on a strike agitating over conditions of service. They want a Collective Bargaining Agreement signed in 2013 is implemented by the government.
The medical practitioners were ordered to return to work on Wednesday or risk being sacked. But the failure of their leaders to appear in court has angered the country’s judiciary.
Justice Helen Wasilwa of Employment and Labour Relations Court said her court could not avoid issuing the arrest warrants.
She is quoted by the Capital FM as saying “The court cannot do anything else if the officials refuse to appear in court when required to”.
Meanwhile the striking doctors vowed decided to continue with their strike. A spokesperson for the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union Kiaguria Thuranira was reported by local media to have said the threats will not deter them from fighting for what they deserve.
Source: Africafeeds.com
