Nakuru Governor Susan Kihika has sparked both applause and backlash after she publicly defended her decision to give birth to her twins abroad, citing personal dignity and professional boundaries as key reasons for not using local healthcare facilities under her jurisdiction.
Speaking in Kikuyu during Madaraka Day celebrations at Heroes Technical Vocational College in Bahati, the governor addressed a cheering crowd, explaining why she opted to deliver in the United States.
“Women, are you there? Don’t you know our duty?” Kihika said, triggering applause. “Now that I am a governor, does it mean I can’t fulfill that duty? Isn’t it like a must? Let me ask you, don’t you know I am the governor? And you know all doctors and nurses in the county are under me?”
She added:
“You want me to lie on a table and be helped to give birth by someone who reports to me? Then when we meet at a meeting later, they’ll be looking at me thinking they’ve seen everything — even my insides. That’s why I decided to reduce the shame a little.”
Kihika promised to build a modern maternity hospital so that women in Nakuru can access the same quality services she received abroad.
“I will build a good maternity so that all the facilities I use, you too can access them. Please support me. Didn’t you see me do my traditional wedding more than 10 years ago? What was that for then? What was I meant to go home and do?”
Governor Kihika recently returned from a five-month stay in the United States, during which she gave birth to twin children. Her extended absence had previously raised concerns among constituents about leadership accountability.
While her remarks were met with cheers at the event, they have since triggered sharp online criticism,
