A section of the Kenya National Union of Nurses, KNUN, branch officials now want the Union’s National Secretary General Seth Panyako out of office.
The officials led by Elegeyo Marakwet Branch Secretary General Biwott say Panyako tenure as the head of the union has been met with gross violations of its members at the same time accusing Panyako of maladministration of the union.
They want him to urgently call for a meeting to make changes at the Unions top leadership positions.
‘Panyako has severally been cited for having an undying desire to unconstitutionally change the union constitution to convert him into a life General Secretary and at one point he attemptend to remove the position of the Chairmanship position from the structure of the Union. He was only stopped by the good office of the Registrar of Trade Unions after an outcry from members,’ laments Biwott.
The officials are also accusing Panyako of using illegal or non-existing body in the Union to unilaterally solicit for more that Kshs 16 million from the Deputy President Wiliam Ruto purportedly to convene a non-existing meeting and sometimes entering into non consented agreement with bodies to deduct nurses money without their participation.
Panyako is further being accused of selling the Union vehicle using his wife without proper consultation with nurses who may have also opted to buy the vehicle. He is also being accused of paying his wife and an underage child Kshs 105, 000 per month through the payroll of the employees.
‘He has also purchased himself a V8 vehicle by changing minutes of a National Executive Comiitee meeting at a cost of Kshs 350, 000 per month totalling up to Kshs 10.5m. The NEC had agreed to a figure of Kashs 2.5M. He has also continued to withdraw money from accounts while the court order barring him from doing so is still in place. He has also continued to block Nurses Programs by running to court to get injunctions and further continues to abuse his employers who are the nurses he leads by use of vulgar language which has yielded to nurses being victims of strikes even if its other cadres notices,’ Biwott further says.
The faction now denounces the recent purported changes Panyako allegedly illegally made in NEC leadership at a meeting in Nakuru on 19th of June 2020 and plead with the Registrar of Trade Unions to reject the changes and also help nurses and the court to get rid of the burden.
Biwott also warns Panyako to stop hiding his leadership failures by attacking the government officers, his colleagues, employees and all but instead retrace his steps and quickly look for something better to do but not in the Union as he has long outlived his relevance in KNUN.
‘We are from today embarking on a journey to disown this tyrant who has no soul and therefore effectively commence a countrywide mobilization which will culminate in dire consequences whose aim is to see him out of the Union. We appeal to our colleagues across the country to mobilize mebers in readiness for our Union redemption,’ Biwott says.
The faction is also asking government agencies led by the Ministry of Health, the Council of Governors, other health sector trade unions, health sector professional bodies to severe all the relationships with Panyako as members organize for procedural removal of him from office.
Biwott says they will soon provide to all nurses and all stakeholders a roadmap available for executing a plan aimed at restoring sanity, dignity and honor to nurses through a structured union leadership.
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