13 Kenyan MPs Admitted in Indian Hospitals with Cancer
13 sitting Members of Parliament including nine Members of National Assembly and four Senators are among thousands of Kenyans seeking cancer treatment in Indian hospitals.
Juja MP Francis Munyua Waititu alias Wakapee, who was successfully treated for brain cancer in India said he was surprised to meet hundreds of Kenyans in the Asian country, some of whom are his colleagues in Parliament.
He said most of the legislators are admitted at Apollo Hospital outlets in New Delhi and other cities in India, but did not reveal their identities.
Waititu jetted back to the country on Friday after seven weeks stay in India, where he was being treated for brain cancer.
“So many people are suffering in silence from cancer. Nobody wants to talk about it because of the stigma behind it. In India, I met hundreds of cancer patients from Kenya alone. Among them were nine of my fellow MPs and four Senators. The cancer scourge is enormous and we can no longer afford to bury our heads in the sand. We must get out and talk about it,” he said.
Data from the Ministry of Health shows that about 10,000 Kenyans travel abroad per year in search of of cancer treatment, spending more than Sh10 billion in the process.
Waititu revealed the suffering some of Kenyan patients go through while seeking treatment in India, including sleeping in the streets.
“Those people you have been helping in fundraising to go for further treatment in India cannot find anywhere to lay down their heads . . . they are sleeping in trenches because they cannot afford renting the expensive houses in India,” said Waititu.
“I personally spent Sh1.8 million on housing alone for the period I was there. How many Kenyans can afford that?” He said.
The Kenya National Bureau of Statistics says that more than 40,000 Kenyans are diagnosed with cancer annually, while the disease claims about 15,000 lives per year.
“If they could have come out openly like myself, a solution would have been realised so far,” MP Waitutu said.