Governors Ditching KEMSA For Their Own Choice Of Drug Suppliers Is A Scandal In Waiting

Council of Governors on Tuesday resolved to ditch Kemsa for their drug supplies to the counties and instead opted to use their own suppliers. The excuse here being the government drug supply agency is in the ICU and under graft probe.

Governors have been up in arms against the monopoly of Kemsa and the graft came only as a blessing.

Parliament last year gave Kemsa the monopoly to be the sole supplier of drugs to health facilities in the counties.

The House also introduced a jail term of two years or a penalty of Sh2 million for anyone who defies the decree.

Before the Act was amended, counties had the choice of buying from independent suppliers or the Mission for Essential Drugs and Supplies, owned jointly by the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Christian Health Association of Kenya.

The county chiefs had proposed that since Kemsa was at that point only supplying 70 per cent of counties’ medical supplies needs, Meds should get 20 per cent of the 30 per cent Kemsa deficit, and the other 10 per cent be from other suppliers.

In the wake of Kemsa scandal, we’ve seen how fingered governors manipulated the drug supply tenders, used proxies and families to win these tenders. Giving them the privilege of choosing their own suppliers is handing a professional assassin a gun. We’re definitely going to see bigger scandals than Kemsa knowing their appetite. Medical experts are also fearing that the standards of the supplies could also be compromised. There’s a general distrust.

MP Billow Kerrow is against the idea, “No! Allowing counties to source medicines outside Kemsa would be far worse, disastrous. Counties will be inundated with poor quality, overpriced & even counterfeit drugs.” He said.

Let @KenyaGovernors have a representation in @Kemsa_Kenya to have their voice heard but this business having parallel procurement will lead to substandard drugs in our public facilities. Counties has no capacities to quantify Medicines Supplies https://t.co/uLol22MLaV

— Dr. Wanjiru Njugi (@WanjiruNjugi) September 8, 2020

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The compromise on standards and create another avenue for chewing with family members.
Excellent move. https://t.co/Lsan7gCKtD

— Thuranira Kaugiria (@drthuranira) September 8, 2020

Cronies of governors to be highly awarded these tenders! County Procurement scandals looming https://t.co/Z16uUB0XAf

— Tolifa (@Pawleecarp) September 8, 2020

Governors who have turned the families into procurement units for the counties cannot claim to be better than @Kemsa_Kenya ,they will expose patients substandard costly drugs and other supplies if they get away with their ill informed theatrics ,let they also pay debts at KEMSA

— Andrew Suleh MD (@andrewsuleh) September 9, 2020

Serious questions is how can Kenyans have faith with County governments to successfully provide pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceuticals commodities from other sources which has cases before the courts to answer over integrity?

And who are going to use them with doctors and medical practitioners in street on a monthly basis over the salary and allowances stand offs?

This is just a new opening for corruption.