Kitui County Government led by Governor Dr. Julius Malombe on Tuesday appeared before the Senate County Public Investments and Special Funds Committee (CPIC) chaired by Senator Godfrey Osotsi, where the county responded firmly on several issues cutting across health assets, unpaid SHA claims, casual workers and drug management.
A key concern raised by the committee was the non-disclosure of land property and assets, particularly title deeds for the county’s 326 health facilities.
Governor Malombe told senators that the Department of Lands had already conducted georeferencing for 52 facilities, with an average of five to six per sub-county as part of efforts to secure ownership documents.
The County boss committed that by July this year, all Level IV hospitals will have title deeds, while 14 health facilities are scheduled for valuation by September 2027.
On pending medical claims, the committee sought clarification over large sums owed to county facilities by the Social Health Authority (SHA) and the defunct NHIF.
The county reported that as at January 2026, total NHIF and SHA claims stood at KSh 890 million, with KSh 480 million being unsettled SHA claims owed to Kitui.
Senators also questioned about engagement of casual workers, especially in hospitals.
Medical Services officials explained that industrial strikes had necessitated the temporary engagement of six casual workers at Kitui County Referral Hospital to ensure continuity of services.
Governor Malombe assured the committee that the county had developed a new Kitui County Temporary Employment Policy, which will bring temporary workers under a structured human resource framework.
He said such workers will be issued personal numbers and operate under clearly defined contractual terms.
According to CECM Koki, the county has 326 health facilities. Among these are 54 health centres and 260 dispensaries, employing a total of 1,219 casual workers.
Senator Osotsi commended Kitui for maintaining a relatively manageable number of casual workers compared to other counties where the casual workforce has ballooned.
Governor Malombe maintained that there are no ghost workers in Kitui, emphasizing that recruitment of temporary workers will strictly be the mandate of the County Public Service Board.
The committee further raised concerns over expired medical supplies and stock-outs. Responding to the issue, the Chief Officer in charge of Drugs and Medical Supplies Aggrey Kamba attributed some expiries to donations received between 2020 and 2021 that had short shelf lives.
The county pledged that by March 15, all expired drugs will be safely disposed of.
Kitui has two operational incinerators — one at the County Referral Hospital and another at Kauwi Hospital — to handle the exercise.
