Meru County Government has committed to continue working hard to combat the cancer menace, despite the limited resources. Deputy Governor Hon. Titus Ntuchiu has said that the National Government needs to pass legislation to identify cancer as a national crisis that needs more allocation of resources to lower cost of treatment, advance research efforts and other measures aimed at fighting the killer disease, noting that Meru County is currently leading nationally in Cancer prevalence.

"We are spending a lot of money in treating final stages of cancer which are not curable, but we need to invest in serious research to discover the factors that have led to these high cases and stop being reactive, so we can relieve the heavy cancer burden from our people, " said the Deputy Governor.

Chief of Staff Hon. Gideon Kimathi, called for more efforts towards curbing the disease which is killing many, noting that National Government’s continued slashing of County Governments budget does not show commitment towards achieving that goal. He said that instituting measures like zero rating importation of cancer treatment equipment and lowering the price of cancer drugs, will go a long way in lowering the burden of high cost of treatment incurred by families affected by the disease.

"To fight cancer seriously we are asking the national Government, even as budget appropriations and allocations are being set aside for the President’s Big Four which includes Universal Healthcare, resources need to be quickly cascaded down to the Counties so that individual governments can support the programs of cancer screening, prevention and treatment in the Counties which directly affect the Mwananchi, instead of having budgetary allocations routinely every year out at national level, which don’t translate to anything tangible on the ground," said the Chief of Staff.

The sentiments were also echoed by Samburu West MP Naisula Lesuuda, who said that as the Women Parliamentarians at the national assembly, they are pushing for the cancer issue to be treated as national agenda which needs urgent attention.

They spoke during the funeral ceremony of late Marcy Kagendo Buria Mirindi, the daughter to Meru Town Municipal Board Chairman Bishop Edward Kirimi Buria. Late Mercy passed on after a long battle with cancer. She was described by all, as a hard-working community leader and mobilizer who led many works of philanthropy in Meru at the Manyangalo Community and elsewhere.

The funeral was also attended by various leaders including Meru County Executives Kiautha Arithi, Carol Mutiga and Dr. Eunice Nkirote Kobia, North Imenti MP Rahim Dawood, Tharaka Nithi County Assembly Speaker and many others.
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