lowereas
Machakos residents have had enough and they are now training their sights on one man: nurses’ union boss Michael Saka, who stands accused of masterminding a shameful political plot to paralyse healthcare services and undermine Governor Wavinya Ndeti’s administration.
What was initially sold to the public as a “nurses’ strike” has been unmasked as a dirty political operation. Investigations reveal that Saka has been secretly colluding with Senator Agnes Kavindu and other opposition figures to deliberately cripple public hospitals for selfish political mileage. Rather than championing the welfare of nurses, Saka is said to be busy hosting night strategy meetings, cutting backdoor deals, and collecting handouts from political masters all at the expense of suffering patients.
Governor Wavinya has termed the strike “unjustifiable and ill-intentioned”, pointing to undeniable evidence of massive investment in the county’s health workforce since she took office: promotion of 422 healthcare workers costing Sh19.08 million annually; recruitment of 54 new nurses in 2024 at Sh56 million; employment of 183 more nurses in 2025 at Sh180 million; and another 231 promotions this year totalling Sh37.1 million. A further 42 nurses are currently being hired at Sh40.8 million a year. No previous administration has pumped such deliberate and consistent investment into the health sector. 
Shockingly, six out of seven union demands have already been met. Negotiations collapsed on only one reasonable issue phased promotions to match available budget. But instead of continuing dialogue like responsible leaders, Saka and his team stormed out, choosing politics over patients.
Governor Wavinya has vowed not to allow Machakos people to be taken hostage, announcing a decisive move to recruit 500 new nurses to replace the striking ones. Her stand has earned overwhelming support across the county, with residents accusing Saka of operating like a reckless political mercenary.
Deeply troubling reports indicate that Saka has been making frantic phone calls to opposition actors seeking “facilitation” in return for prolonging the strike. Insiders point out that his family lives comfortably in Kiambu and western Kenya far from the hospitals he is busy crippling showing he has no personal stake in the pain he is inflicting on Machakos residents.
Abandoned patients, broken services, and lives put on the line all because of one man’s toxic political games. But the people of Machakos are speaking loudly: enough is enough. They stand firmly behind Governor Wavinya Ndeti and are demanding that Michael Saka stop weaponizing healthcare and leave politics to politicians.
Machakos deserves better and political mercenaries hiding behind union titles must be called out and stopped.
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