Nairobi Hospital saga: New twist as President Ruto vows to protect it from ‘conmen’ amid takeover claims

According to President Ruto, he was approached by some of the hospital's officials seeking his intervention in an alleged takeover, a request he said he will take on staunchly.

"Senior doctors, senior professionals from Nairobi Hospitals approached me to save Nairobi Hospital from conmen, fraudsters and charlatans who wanted to expropriate it. Nairobi Hospital is a premier medical institution that serves the region. There is no way I am going to allow Nairobi Hospital to be taken hostage by fraudsters," he said.

Speaking in Mt. Elgon, Bungoma County on Tuesday, President Ruto said that he has ordered legal action to be taken on those involved in the alleged disruption, holding that the health facility should be secured to serve Kenyans effectively. 

"I have instructed with clarity that all those who are involved in fraudulent activities in Nairobi Hospital will be removed, taken to court, charged and Nairobi Hospital is going to serve the people of Kenya," he said.

"We are going to stand with Nairobi Hospital. It is an institution that serves the Republic of Kenya and we are going to defend its right to exist and we are going to stop at nothing."

Dr. John Obwaka, an admitting consultant at the Hospital, and a Director at the Kenya Hospital Association (KHA), Nairobi Hospital Board vice-chairman Samson Kinyanjui, another director Valery Gaya and former director Chris Bichage were arrested under mysterious circumstances and later presented in court to face criminal charges.

They are charged with an alleged conflict of interest, unlawful receipt of benefits and failure to comply with financial reporting requirements.

According to the charge sheet presented by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), Bichange and Kinyanjui are accused of receiving millions of shillings from an insurance agency contracted by the hospital’s governing association.

Prosecutors further charge that the two directors, alongside Dr. Obwaga and Gaya, failed to comply with statutory financial reporting obligations.

According to the prosecution, Dr. Obwaka failed to lodge the company’s 2022 and 2023 financial statements with the Registrar as required by law. 

The charge sheet also alleges that Dr. Munga, Kinyanjui, Obwaga and Gaya jointly failed to lodge the association’s 2024 financial statements with the Registrar.

This comes as the United Opposition has maintained accusations against President Ruto, claiming that he is seeking a stake in the hospital.

The matter has sparked public debate on the hospital's ownership, forcing Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale to elucidate that it is owned by the Kenya Hospitals Association and is registered as a company limited by guarantee, meaning it is member-owned and has no shareholders.

Duale added that the structure of a company limited by guarantee means the hospital cannot be acquired or privatised.

He also intimated that the President of Kenya has traditionally served as the hospital’s patron, reflecting its long-standing role as a premier national and regional health facility.