Over 60 Kenyan MPs Battling Cancer, Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko Says

Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko says that more than 60 Kenyan Members of Parliament (MPs) are currently battling cancer.

Addressing the media at Lee Funeral Home in Nairobi following the death of Bomet Governor Dr. Joyce Laboso on Monday, Sonko said leaders must not wait any longer to address the cancer menace.

“Cancer is a serious disease. The reports we have now indicate that there are over 60 MPs with cancer... As leaders, we need to strategize on the way forward and how we will deal with the disease,” said Sonko.

Speaking at the same place, Deputy President William Ruto and Laboso’s family confirmed that the Governor was battling cancer.

Dr. Laboso has been undergoing treatment at Nairobi Hospital's Intensive Care Unit (ICU) since she jetted back to the country on July 14th after a medical trip abroad.

Laboso had left the country for the United Kingdom on May 29th after handing over duties to Deputy Governor Hillary Barchok.
 

She spent six weeks at London's Royal Marden NHS Foundation Trust Hospital before she was discharged to seek further treatment in India.

Last year, Juja MP Francis Munyua Waititu, who was successfully treated for brain cancer in India, said he met nine Kenyan MPs and four Senators in the Asian country, who were equally seeking treatment for the deadly disease.

Waitutu said he stayed in India for seven weeks and met senior Kenyan government officials and prominent businessmen being treated for 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.

 “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 to rent 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 posed.

Waititu said there was a need for prominent Kenyans to declare their cancer status to fight stigma. “If they could have come out openly like myself, a solution would have been realized so far,” he said.