KMPDU claims politics in Coast hospital CEO interdiction, issues 7 days strike notice

KMPDU secretary general Davji Atellah /HANDOUT

The Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) has issued a seven-day strike notice following the interdiction of Coast General Teaching and Referral Hospital CEO Dr Iqbal Khandwalla.

It accused Mombasa government of interfering with the running of the hospital and undermining professional integrity to appease some unnamed political actors.

KMPDU secretary general Davji Atellah described Khandwalla as a distinguished professional whose career is being “sabotaged through a sham administrative process”.

“KMPDU will not tolerate the victimisation of our members through political witch-hunts masquerading as disciplinary action,” Atellah said.

He said the interdiction was procedurally defective and legally flawed on several grounds as Khandwalla was interdicted without being issued a mandatory show-cause letter or given an opportunity to respond to the allegations against him.

“This violates Article 47 of the constitution and Section 41 of the Employment Act,” the union said.

KMPDU faulted the language used in the interdiction letter, saying it was prejudicial and suggested that guilt had already been established before investigation started.

The letter claimed the CEO of deliberately failed, refused and neglected his duties.

“The wording points to a concluded finding of guilt before investigations have even commenced,” the union said.

They also raised concerns over jurisdiction, stating that disciplinary authority over county officers lies with the County Public Service Board (CPSB).

According to KMPDU, the process was initiated through an online hospital board meeting held at 8.30 pm on a Saturday and was finalised by the county secretary the following morning, effectively bypassing legally mandated procedures.

KMPDU termed the move institutional hostility, claiming the hospital board had previously attempted to weaken the CEO’s office.

“The deterioration of public confidence is not as a result of Dr Khandwalla’s leadership,” the union said, attributing the crisis to chronic shortage of essential drugs, surgical supplies and basic medical commodities.

KMPDU also argued that the accusations against the CEO were substantively weak, saying the CEO is an administrative head and not a clinical decision-maker.

Khandwalla does not sit on the hospital’s waiver committee and does not personally authorise clinical admissions, hence claims of neglecting emergency care factually misplaced, the union said.

It blamed persistent understaffing on the county government’s failure to hire adequate numbers of doctors and specialists to cope with demand at the regional referral facility.

In the statement, KMPDU issued three demands: the immediate revocation of the interdiction letter, the resolution of all pending issues affecting the county health sector, and respect for due process and professional independence.

Failure to act, the union warned, would trigger industrial action within seven days effective February 23.

“KMPDU stands firm - we will not allow professional expertise to be sacrificed on the altar of political convenience,” Atellah said.

The county government had not issued a response by the time of publication.