•Authority at risk of losing land in different parts of the country for which it does not have documents
•Land to be titled is in Kakamega, Kisumu and Eldoret
Image: COURTESY
Land belonging to the Kenya Medical Supplies Authority will be titled by then end of the month, the CEO has said.
Jonah Manjari said the board had taken up the issue and engaged experts to ensure the title deeds are acquired within the specified timeframe.
Manjari was responding to a media report from the Auditor General for the financial year ended June 2018.
The authority is said to be at risk of losing land in different parts of the country for which it does not have ownership documents.
“We expect to have the title deeds for Kakamega, Kisumu and Eldoret parcels of land by end of June,” Manjari said.
The auditor's report also questioned stocking of expired drugs valued at Sh150 million.
It also questioned the expenditure of Sh8 million by the authority’s board of directors on sitting and lunch allowances.
Manjari said with the change of Kemas’s business model some commodities attracted little or no demand from public health facilities hence over time they exhausted their shelf life and became obsolete.
He also attributed the expiry to change in treatment regimens effected through policy changes and adoption of new technologies in healthcare from analogue to digital diagnosis in radiology which rendered X-ray films and processing chemicals obsolete.
“Some drugs under the old treatment regimen became obsolete due to change of treatment protocol such as shifts to better and more efficacious treatment regimens,” he said.
He said through demand and planning, Kemsa ensures accurate forecasting and quantification are done according to the needs of counties.
"We wish to assure the public that no expired drugs have been supplied and Kemsa is committed and will remain committed to ensuring that the quality standards in procuring, warehousing and distribution of all health products and technologies are upheld," he said.
In response to board expenses, the CEO said Kemsa stayed without a substantive board chair and chief executive officer for a long period.
During that time there were increased board activities and consultations that required the presence of the board session chair and one member on various ongoing developments within the organisation.
“We therefore confirm that no sitting allowance was paid to a board member undeservingly,” he said.