All elderly persons aged 65 years and above and people living with disabilities in Thika will benefit from Jungle Afya program geared towards helping them access free medical treatment, start small businesses among other things.
This was disclosed during a free medical camp held at Maguguni Secondary School in Thika East where over 300 people received treatment. They included the elderly and people living with disabilities who were given wheelchairs.
Joyce Njeri who is the coordinator of Jungle Afya team said the team has been going door to door in the whole constituency in health awareness campaign and mapping out the areas and establishing the number of the elderly and people living with disability in order to enable the office of Thika MP Patrick Wainaina help them get NHIF, inua Jamii funds and other funds that may enable them to start small businesses and transform their lives.
Njeri said it was the vision of the area member of parliament to ensure the elderly and the disabled in the constituency get free medical care. She, however, urged the government to do a program like their to ensure all elderly persons aged 65 years and above including all people living with disability get free treatment bin all public and private hospitals.
This comes in the wake of many complaints where the elderly and people living with disability alleged that they had been neglected over the years and that funds made for them had not been reaching them.
Mary Wambui has been living with disability since she was born and says she has never received any money for the disabled persons despite filling many forms. She said there were so many people living with disability in the area who are suffe3ring unnoticed and urged the government to help them better their lives.
She and Agnes Mwangi, however, thanked the MP for the program saying disability is not inability and that they would admire starting their small businesses instead of begging in the streets. Jungle Afya team is affiliated with Thika MP Patrick Wainaina and is purely sponsored by his NGO Jungle Foundation.