Senators have called on the national government to take immediate action regarding more than 400 bodies from the Shakahola massacre that remain preserved at the Malindi Sub-County Hospital morgue, stating that their prolonged preservation is blocking critical development projects and preventing families from finding closure. 

Speaking to journalists outside Governor Gideon Mung’aro’s residence in Kilifi, the Senate Health Committee, led by David Wakoli (Bungoma), said the hospital urgently needs space to expand its services to better serve the community. 

The committee recommended that unidentified bodies be buried in a mass grave at Shakahola, where they were originally exhumed. 

“Malindi Sub-County Hospital needs space to build new modern infrastructure to serve the people of Kilifi. Those who died due to religious influence also need to be laid to rest so this matter can finally be concluded,” Wakoli said. 

Wakoli said the county government had previously allocated funds for facility development, but construction has been unable to proceed due to a lack of mortuary space. 

“Governor Mung’aro is in a difficult position because money was allocated in both the previous and current financial years to build a modern facility, but he cannot proceed,” Wakoli said.  

The Senate committee is “disappointed and advises both the ministries of Health and Interior to bring this matter to a conclusion and allow the citizens of Kilifi to move forward.” 

His Kilifi counterpart, Stewart Madzayo, echoed calls for urgent government intervention, expressing concern that continuing to preserve the bodies is preventing access to critical healthcare services. 

“I want to request the government to consider removing the bodies and burying them in a mass grave in Shakahola, where they were exhumed, or allow their families to identify their loved ones for proper burial,” Madzayo said. 

Mung’aro described the situation as a public nuisance, citing the unbearable stench and disruption to hospital operations.  

He claimed the county had spent more than Sh36 million on electricity to power the refrigerated containers storing the bodies. 

“It’s high time the government takes action regarding the Shakahola bodies preserved at the Malindi mortuary. As a government, we are spending a lot of money on electricity bills,” Mung’aro said.