President Uhuru Kenyatta on Wednesday decreed that all nurses should report back to work by Friday February 15, 2019, during an address at State House, Nairobi.
Flanked by Council of Governors (CoG) Chairman, Wycliffe Oparanya and his deputy Mwangi wa Iria, President Kenyatta made it clear that adherence to court orders was not optional.
"No one is above the law, obeying court orders is not optional and it is a requirement of all of us no matter their place in society,” he asserted.
He added that any nurse who failed to comply with his, as well as the courts’ order, would be fired from both the county government and the Ministry of Health.
The president referred to the nurses' strike as unlawful following the court's 60-day suspension ruling.
"We have a clear development agenda. As an investment destination and a Government that seeks to provide services to her people, we cannot allow unlawful industrial actions to derail us from our focus of taking Kenya forward," the President decreed.
The CoG chairman had earlier moved to court and won in his petition that challenged the legitimacy of the strike.
The county governments were also given the mandate to come up with any action they deemed appropriate against nurses who decide to defy the order to report back to work on Friday by 8am.
As Commander-in-Chief, he further instructed the National Police Service to take stern action against any picketers who may attempt to intimidate nurses who report back to work as ordered.
