TSC Chairman Dr Jamleck Muturi said mechanisms had been put in place at both county and national levels to resolve concerns raised by teachers regarding access to medical services.

Speaking when he flagged off World Teachers Run that brought together teachers from across the Eastern region at Kangaru Girls High School in Embu County ahead of the World Teachers’ Day celebrations, Dr Muturi said each county has an implementation committee tasked with addressing issues affecting teachers under the health insurance scheme.

He said the committees bring together representatives of teachers’ unions, SHA and TSC, allowing the stakeholders to jointly identify and resolve challenges affecting teachers.

According to Dr Muturi, issues that cannot be resolved at the county level are escalated to a national committee for further action.

He urged teachers and Kenyans not to demonise SHA, saying the scheme was providing medical cover to teachers, including access to treatment abroad where necessary. “We should not demonise SHA. It is taking care of our teachers, including overseas treatment,” Muturi said.

The TSC Chairman also encouraged teachers to prioritise their health by maintaining physical fitness and engaging in regular exercises.

However, teachers’ union officials called for further improvements in the implementation of the SHA scheme, saying some challenges were still affecting teachers when seeking medical services.

KUPPET Embu County Secretary General Jacob Karura urged the government to ensure that all hospitals across the country are adequately covered under SHA, saying some facilities have limitations that affect the quality and accessibility of services available to teachers.

Karura said addressing gaps in hospital coverage would help ensure that teachers can access medical services without unnecessary difficulties.

His counterpart from Tharaka Nithi County, KUPPET Executive Secretary Mathew James, called for a review of the outpatient allocation under the SHA scheme, saying the Sh4,000 allocation was inadequate to meet teachers’ outpatient medical needs.

The union officials also called on the government to employ more teachers to address staffing shortages in schools across the region.

They said some schools continue to operate with teacher deficits, a situation they argued was putting additional pressure on the available teaching workforce and could affect effective delivery of school teaching lessons.

The officials urged TSC to prioritise schools with significant staffing gaps when making new recruitments and deployments.

The concerns by the union officials come as TSC maintains that mechanisms are already in place to address challenges experienced by teachers, with county implementation committees providing a platform for unions, SHA and the commission to work together.

The marathon was part of activities leading up to the World Teachers’ Day celebrations on 5th October 2026, bringing together teachers from across the Eastern region to promote physical fitness and celebrate the contribution of teachers to the education sector.

By SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT 

Installed in 2023, the plant ended oxygen shortages and replaced monthly spending of KSh 1.6 million on supplies, with the County now saving nearly KSh 6 million through local production.

Chief Officer for Drugs and Medical Supplies, Aggrey Kamba, said the County is ready to sustain operations. “We now have a stable oxygen system and will ensure continuous supply across our facilities,” he said.

The facility no longer experiences oxygen shortages and currently supplies oxygen to 14 hospitals across the county, strengthening emergency and critical care services.

Victor Okoth of Global Health Supply Chain-Procurement and Supply Management (GHSC-PSM) program, KE Oxygen Activity, implemented by Chemonics said the handover marks a successful transition to county management. “The system is now fully in the hands of the County to serve patients without interruption,” he said.

The transition was marked by the handover of critical oxygen plant support equipment from the United States Government, through Chemonics International, under the GHSC-PSM Program. The equipment includes service kits for oxygen compressors, generator spare parts, voltage regulators, uninterruptible power supply (UPS) units, and safety gear. The spare parts, are enough to sustain operations for the next two years. All items valued at KSh 4.1 million.

The Ministry has also secured maintenance contracts with suppliers to support the oxygen plant over the same period, with plans for renewal to ensure continuity.

Kitui continues to invest in health infrastructure in line with Governor Dr. Julius Malombe’s Kitui Promise of improving access to quality healthcare, with a focus on sustainable systems that can be managed locally.

By MWINGI TIMES CORRESPONDENT 

The driver and conductor of the said vehicle were arrested and taken to Kanyonyoo police station where they are awaiting being presented in court to answer charges related to the shocking incident.

Speaking to the press, the county police boss revealed that the discovery happened at around 2.30am along Garissa-Thika road on Thursday morning. The bus was travelling from Dadaab in Garissa county to Nairobi City.

"Police impounded the  bus registration number KDG 358Q. It was travelling from Dadaab to Nairobi.  They found a bag with a milk container. Inside it had pieces of meat used to conceal 48 bullets of  the AK47 calibre," said Ms Kalondu.

She appealed to Kenyans to cooperate with investigating agencies as police commence the probe. She called for the volunteering information that will help restore security in the region.

By MWINGI TIMES TEAM

On Wednesday,  IEBC Chairperson Erastus Ethekon announced the by-election date in a special Kenya gazette notice. "Following the declaration of a vacancy that occurred in the office of the MCA Migwani ward in Mwingi West Constituency,  Kitui County issued by the Speaker on August 6, there shall be a by-election in Migwani ward on Tuesday, November 17, 2026", said the IEBC boss Ethekon.

Election campaigns kicked off on October 21 and willl terminate on November 14.  

The IEBC announced voter registration will stay suspended until after the by-election day, November 17.

By MWINGI TIMES CORRESPONDENT 

A spot-check at the Assembly revealed that the few Ward Reps who show up during sitting days intentionally keep off the debating chambers and instead opt to while away time at the Member’s lounge.

On the other hand, several other MCAs also show up casually dressed in jeans and t-shirts instead of suits and ties as per parliamentary requirements in order to avoid attending the plenary sittings at the August House.

The go-slow by MCAs has also led to lethargy by legislative staff who have been adamant to schedule legislative business on the Order Papers. Several Order Papers for previous sittings have been blank, leaving the few MCAs attending plenary sittings to enter the House and leave immediately without transacting any business.

Committee meetings have also been hard hit by the quorum hitches, with Member’s failing to show up to deliberate on matters requiring their attention, leaving Embu County residents with a serious representation gap.

A source who did not wish to be quoted intimated to the press that despite absconding the plenary and committee sittings, the absentee MCAs always conspire to have attendance registers signed to draw sitting allowances.

Unconfirmed reports indicate that the MCAs who have unofficially started campaigns to defend their seats in the August 2027 General Election are now opting to accompany senior politicians in the county during development project launching and commissioning ceremonies.

However, Deputy Speaker Ibrahim Swaleh was quick to downplay allegations of his counterparts being in a go-slow, saying quorum hitches are normal in the parliamentary setup.

Swaleh who is also the MCA for Kirimari ward nonetheless cautioned MCAs that the public was keenly watching their conduct, and therefore should always uphold integrity and avoid truancy.