Laikipia Residents have raised safety concerns following the recent unveiling of Bodaboda Ambulances to facilitate the transportation of pregnant women to health facilities in Laikipia County earlier this week.
Launched by Albert Taiti, the County Executive Committee Member (CECM) responsible for Health, the motorbikes are modified to help in transportation of pregnant women to health facilities when normal ambulances fail to arrive in time.
According to the county government officials, these controversial ‘’ambulances’’ will be stationed in Ol Moran, Sosian, Lamuria, Mukogodo among other areas with bad terrains.
However, residents have expressed discontent on social media platforms after the news surfaced online, questioning the viability of the project given the poor condition of the region’s roads.
‘’It is so unfortunate for the county which has numerous challenges in the road and health sector to unveil motorbikes for our pregnant women, how safe are they given the poor state of our feeder roads? Let the governor fix the road, equip the already available ambulances before such projects can be brought to Laikipia,’’ said Simon Mwangi Chege, Youth Leader, Laikipia
“Already, the pregnant woman will have miscarriage due to the terrain. How does the government consider this as a priority?” Posed Jane Nyokabi on her Facebook page.
A human rights advocate within the county, Fidel Jesus, queried the allocation of funds allocated for the purchase of ambulances and questioned the practicality of transporting pregnant women by bodaboda.
“The health department has been allocated enough funds to even buying ambulances. Instead of these bodaboda ambulances, why can’t the government build health centers in these areas?’’ He questioned
Other residents across the board voiced concern that the county government might be misallocating resources towards such activities, calling this approach ‘pure ignorance’ and asserting that the community should not be misled into supporting such ventures.
Similarly, John Njagi, an activist from Nyahururu, commented on the initiative, expressing the view that it reminiscent of a bygone era when women were transported on bicycles, and emphasizing the need for the county government to provide clarification.
However, in response, Taiti defended the strategy saying that it is impractical to procure ambulances for every healthcare facility, which is why the partnership with a motorcycle supply company was established, with motorcycles to be stationed in the remote areas of Laikipia.
He further elaborated that no county government funds had been used saying that the Swedish based company had fully funded the project.
“This is a mutual partnership with Eezer Company therefore the public should not worry as the county governments will identify the areas where the bodaboda ambulances will be taken to,” he said.
He added that despite the funding, the county government was planning to procure more ambulances to help in service delivery in the region.
