Two women who are members of a religious sect in Kirinyaga County have been arrested by public health officers for refusing to have their children vaccinated against polio.
They were arrested at Kianjogu village and taken to Wang'uru Police Station for interrogation.
Drama unfolded as the officers led by the Mwea West public health boss Mr Evan Kago chased the women as they took off with their five children. The officers eventually apprehended them.
On seeing the officers approaching, the women locked their houses and jumped on two motorcycles saying it was against their faith to have their children immunised.
They sped off but the officers who were in an official vehicle pursued them.
After a one hour dramatic chase they caught up with the mothers and arrested them.
As they were being bundled into the vehicle together with their children aged between three and five years, the women who are followers of Kanitha Wa Ngai sect that does not believe in conventional medicine insisted they were prepared for the worst.
DIVINE 'HEALING'
"Even if you come with guns or take us to court, we shall not allow our children be given polio jabs," one of the women said.
The women said they delivered their children at home and got healed by praying to their God and they should not be forced to go to hospital or have their children immunised.
Mr Kago said it was a criminal offence to deny children medical treatment and the women must therefore face the law.
The public health boss said public health laws provide that children aged five years and below be immunised against diseases such as polio and measles.
He said the five children have not been immunised against polio since birth and risked suffering from the disease.
Mr Kago said he would obtain a court order seeking to have the children given the polio dose at the local police station where they are being held together with their mothers.
"We have to save these children who are at the risk of contracting the disease whether their mothers liked it or not," he said.
TARGETING 5,000 CHILDREN
He also said his office would liaise with the area children's officer so that the children could be taken to a juvenile home.
At Kianjogu, where the officers are targeting to immunise 5,000 children, there are many followers of the sect who do not go to medical institutions for treatment.
The followers do not have a permanent church structure and usually congregate in the open for worship.
When they fall sick they seek divine intervention as they believe that going to hospital is a sin.
The Nation established that some of the children of the followers of the sect who have not been immunised since birth have developed paralysis on their legs and could not walk.
Mr Kago told the followers to keep their faith but let their children be immunised and be treated at medical institutions.
Mr Kago said officers must do their work and those out to block them would not be spared.
He said the crackdown on sect followers who were frustrating government efforts to fight polio would continue.
