Seme MP James Nyikal, on Monday, November 23, hit out at his critics who accused him of shading crocodile tears in Parliament.
The MP, alongside two colleagues, Sarah Paulata Korere (Laikipia North) and Joyce Akai Emanikor (Turkana Woman Rep), wept on Wednesday, November 18, after listening to the plight of Kenyan doctors.
A section of Kenyans took issue with Nyikal's public cry, claiming that he himself had served in various capacities in the Ministry of Health yet no major reforms were realized during his tenure.
"James Nyikal has been in various leadership positions within MOH since 1987. All these issues facing doctors could've been averted had he acted then. Stop pretense and media PR. You are a good example of a failed system," accused a Twitter user.
In response, the MP disputed the accounts noting that during his tenure, reforms were made especially in the salaries sector.
"I have noted this view that the problems facing doctors should have been solved between 2003 and 2008. In fact it is as far back as 2000 when I was chairman of KMA (Kenya Medical Association).
"In deed a lot was done especially salaries allowances. My bitterness is, many have been reversed," responded Nyikal.
In a video that surfaced online, the MP also explained that he was concerned that doctors were limited, and that a crisis was likely to befall the country if they kept dying at the rate they are today.
In Parliament, the MPs had been informed that some doctors had not been paid salaries, and lacked insurance cover against Covid-19.
Speaking during the session, Nyikal claimed that the treatment the government was meting on health workers countrywide was unfair.
Nyikal joined the Ministry of Health as an intern in 1977 and rose through the ranks. He became the Director of Medical Services at Ministry of Medical Services in 2003.
He served as a Permanent Secretary between 2008 and 2012 in the Ministry of Gender.
