Duale: Ruto’s ‘national cake’ philosophy empowering all Kenyans

Health CS Aden Duale / HANDOUT

Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale has defended President William Ruto’s governance philosophy, saying the administration is committed to equitable distribution of national resources while expanding access to healthcare for public servants.

Duale said the President’s leadership is anchored on the principle that national resources belong to all Kenyans, dismissing critics who question the government’s approach.

“I want to assure you, I’m particularly under the leadership of President Ruto. Do you know why these people are calling for Ruto? Why are you distributing the national cake fairly?” Duale said.

“Because those theybelieve in shareholding. All shades of our people and the philosophy of President Ruto is that the national cake, the resources of our country, under his leadership, belong to all Kenyans.”

On healthcare reforms, the CS said more than 415,000 teachers and their dependents are now accessing services in over 9,000 health facilities across the country under improved medical arrangements.

“I am happy to report as the Minister for Health that the teachers of Kenya, over 415,000 with their dependents, are now served better in more facilities, over 9,000 facilities. They can access all our Level Six hospitals, both private, public and faith-based,” he said.

Duale also disclosed that the government intervened to settle medical bills for teachers injured in a recent road accident in Nairobi.

“Last week, following the unfortunate incident where we had teachers who were injured in an accident in Nairobi, I spoke to the leadership of KUPPET and even those two teachers who were interns and who were admitted to Kenyatta National Hospital,” he said.

“I have directed the CEO of Kenyatta National Hospital to pay their bill from our disaster fund because they were not part of the medical scheme for teachers. So teachers are happy.”

The Health CS announced that members of the National Police Service and the Prisons Department will soon be onboarded onto the Social Health Authority (SHA).

Duale has on several occasions defended the effectiveness of SHA, saying public criticism often overlooks progress made in strengthening oversight within the health insurance system.

He said said the government has rejected fraudulent health insurance claims amounting to Sh11.6 billion, citing this as evidence that tighter controls are beginning to yield results.

He noted that the government has enhanced monitoring mechanisms within the health insurance framework and warned that any attempt to misuse public funds would be detected and addressed in accordance with the law.

“Screaming headlines sell; if you say SHA is working, it will not sell, but screaming headlines will get out of the shell,” Duale said during an interview with Citizen TV.

“As of this evening [Wednesday], we have rejected Sh11.6 billion in fraudulent claims. Every coin that a Kenyan has paid for health care insurance if it is stolenthe system will detect it, flag it, and the government will prosecute,” he added.

According to the CS, the rejected claims were identified largely during the transition from the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) to the SHA, a period he said required heightened scrutiny.