The nurses’ strike in Kisumu has taken a humanitarian turn on its fourth day, with the Kenya National Union of Nurses (KNUN) Kisumu branch suspending a planned street protest to stand in solidarity with victims of the recent Kisumu–Kakamega highway tragedy.

Instead of marching to Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o’s office as earlier scheduled, the nurses joined a blood donation drive at Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital (JOOTRH) to support the 26 survivors of the accident and honour the 26 lives lost, most of them from Nyakach Subcounty.

KNUN Deputy Secretary General Maurice Opetu said the decision was made out of compassion for the victims and their families. “Our nurses are donating blood to help save lives and show that we are with the people of Nyakach during this difficult time,” he said.

Opetu urged the county government to use this moment to reach out for dialogue.

“We want to call on the county government of Kisumu for being nonsensical to the plight of nurses of Kisumu. We gave a strike notice to all 47 county governments. Some counties, about 10, have responded and are currently negotiating with our members. However, it is noted that for three weeks, they have never heard of anyone in Kisumu showing interest or any other engagement with them, which means they are not interested in solving the dispute, causing the nurses to go on strike,” he stated.

The strike, which began last week, is driven by demands for the county to implement the 2024 Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) salary review already adopted by the national government, as well as to address other pending welfare issues affecting nurses.

Opetu said arrangements had been made to ensure nurses in critical areas at JOOTRH continue caring for accident victims. He also appealed to psychological counsellors and social workers to offer ongoing support to survivors and bereaved families.

The union has warned that if no agreement is reached, street demonstrations will resume on Tuesday.