Former Chief Justice and 2027 presidential aspirant David Maraga has criticised the government over the deaths of at least 136 newborns in Kiambu County public hospitals during a 127-day doctors’ strike.

In a statement released on his X, dated October 3, 2025, Maraga described the situation as a national tragedy, highlighting systemic failures in public health.

“This is not just a failure of Kiambu County leadership; it is a regime failure, right from the national level.”

The statement, notes that the ongoing strike, now in its fifth month, has severely disrupted maternity and neonatal services. “It is unconscionable that on the 127th day of the Kiambu doctors’ strike, at least 136 newborns have lost their lives in our public hospitals. Let that sink in,” Maraga wrote.

He argued that constitutional guarantees of dignity, the right to life, and the highest attainable standard of health have been undermined, leaving parents and patients facing “silence, bureaucracy, and collapsed services.”

“When the 2010 Constitution was enacted, it promised dignity, the right to life, and the highest attainable standard of health for every citizen. Yet, what we are witnessing today is a healthcare system that is choked with desperate patients and mourning parents who are met with silence, bureaucracy, and collapsed services.”

Maraga went on, the so-called “managed” healthcare system is anything but managed. It is an act of impunity where deductions are made from the people, but they are treated as expendable when they seek access to healthcare.

He noted that instead of saving lives, SHA has become another layer of inefficiency and political talk, detached from the suffering on the ground and deaf to the people’s cries.

“We are angry because a child dying daily as a result of political failure is unacceptable. This government is incapable of guaranteeing the most basic right: the right to life. It’s time for a reset to the politics of compassion demanded by our Constitution when it promises a right to inherent dignity and to universal healthcare for all Kenyans,” he wrote.

Government disputes figures

Kiambu County officials have disputed the figures cited by Maraga. Health Chief Officer Patrick Nyagah reported 53 neonatal deaths between May and August, with a breakdown of 16 in May, 14 in June, 9 in July, and 14 in August.

Nyagah said the higher number cited by Maraga includes stillbirths and infants born before the 21-week survival threshold, which are recorded separately under national health standards.

Nyagah emphasised that hospitals remain operational, with approximately 90 striking doctors having returned to work and replacements hired. He urged calm, stating, “If you walk into any hospital in Kiambu at any time of day, you will get services. We do not have a crisis but a dispute with KMPDU.”

Public concern

The ongoing strike has left families anxious, with parents reporting long waits for care and uncertainty over neonatal services. Patients in maternity wards described the emotional toll of navigating hospitals with limited staff, highlighting the human impact behind the statistics.