Health CS Mutahi Kagwe’s name is domesticated among many Kenyans following his frontline role in the fight against Covid-19.
The CS is no stranger to leadership, having started his journey as a Boys Scouts troop leader in the 32nd Nyeri Troop, Kihatu Primary School, in 1971.
At that time, he used to mobilise fellow troops in the Scout movement to help old ladies with house chores.
After school, they would go to the grannies’ houses, clean their clothes, tidy up their houses and weed their gardens.
“I did not even think of being a minister then. I was 10 or 11 years old,” he told the Star in an interview on Tuesday.
The CS was a time-keeper in primary school, house prefect in high school and he chaired so many clubs.
Kagwe is now the face of the government in the Covid-19 fight, works he has steered to the point where the government is seeking a vaccine.
Not all Kenyans will get the Covid-19 vaccine for free, the Health ministry said. Only those who cannot afford.
“There will be a cost implication. Discussions are ongoing to see who and how the cost will be footed,” said acting Health director general Patrick Amoth.
The ministry also said no one will be forced to take the jab, which means those who refuse it for religious, philosophical or other reasons will be let go.
About 12 million doses of Oxford-Astrazeneca vaccine are expected in the country early next year. They will be stored at the National Vaccines Store in Kitengela, run by the Ministry of Health.
The vaccine is among the milestones in the health sector, and Kenyans credit Health CS Mutahi Kagwe, a Star Person of the Year.
From the vaccines store, the doses will then be redistributed to regional depots countrywide.
Kenya has ordered 24 million doses for about Sh10 billion.
When the first doses arrive, there is a priority list of who will be vaccinated first, or to whom it will be offered first.
Health workers will be the first beneficiaries followed by the elderly, who are vulnerable because of their age, then people who are at risk because of illnesses or preexisting conditions.
Frontline workers, such as the police and teachers, will also be prioritised, as well as children with illnesses making them susceptible to Covid-19.
The CS told the Star no one will be compelled to take the vaccine.
“The vaccine is not mandatory. If someone doesn’t want to be vaccinated, you can’t force them,” he said.
“The hallmark of a successful vaccination campaign is that the government must vaccinate as many people as possible.
“The only way to do this with some form of equality and equity is ensuring that anybody who cannot afford it must get it for free,” he said.
A team headed by Dr Willis Akwale is working on the infrastructure and logistics of handling the vaccines.
Kagwe said they are putting in place measures to address key questions.
They include: When does it arrive? Where does it arrive? If at an airport, how much time do you spend to clear it? Where and how do you store it? How does it move out of the storage? Who is going to vaccinate people?
He exuded confidence the country has a system in place, having vaccinated against other diseases in the past, and ample storage space at the Kitengela drugs storage depot.