Why Nairobi Hospital senior doctors asked Ruto to intervene in leadership crisis

Senior consultants at The Nairobi Hospital have escalated the institution’s deepening governance crisis, alleging financial mismanagement, disappearing funds and attempts to destroy evidence as they defended their decision to seek intervention from William Ruto, who serves as patron of the Kenya Hospital Association (KHA), the membership body that owns the hospital.

In a statement issued on March 16, 2026, six senior medical consultants said they were compelled to appeal to President Ruto after what they described as years of deterioration at one of Kenya’s most prominent private healthcare institutions. 

The hospital, founded in 1954, sits on 21.8 acres of land granted by the government under a trust for healthcare purposes, and has served high-profile patients including Kenya’s first president, Jomo Kenyatta and former president Daniel arap Moi.

The doctors said they had spent months attempting to mediate between rival factions within the hospital’s leadership before turning to government offices for help.

According to the statement, the consultants first approached the Office of the Chief of Staff and Head of Public Service Felix Koskei in March 2025, presenting allegations of financial impropriety and manipulation of the hospital’s membership register by members of the board.

Koskei reportedly referred the matter to the Attorney-General, triggering an investigation under Section 800 of the Companies Act, which allows authorities to conduct searches and seize company records where corporate fraud is suspected.

The doctors claim the investigation recovered a large cache of documents, some allegedly hidden in secret compartments in the company secretary’s office and others retrieved from the hospital’s incinerator after what they described as an attempt by board members to destroy evidence.

They also said the crisis prompted a second appeal in November 2025 to Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale, citing an insurance boycott and governance failures that had begun affecting operations at the hospital.

Despite these efforts, the doctors said the dispute worsened, forcing them to seek direct intervention from the president earlier this month.

The consultants painted a picture of a hospital facing severe financial distress. According to audited accounts cited in their statement, the hospital has recorded losses exceeding Sh3 billion, including an estimated Sh2 billion deficit in 2024 alone. 

They further claim the hospital owes more than Sh4 billion to suppliers, with some companies allegedly suspending deliveries of essential drugs and equipment.

The doctors also alleged that Sh9.1 billion in cash reserves, accumulated over the years through depreciation funds, had “vanished or been siphoned out,” though they did not provide detailed documentation in the public statement.

The governance crisis has also fuelled extensive legal battles. The consultants said legal fees had ballooned to over Sh680 million in 2024, largely due to disputes over control of the institution.

Another major allegation involves the manipulation of the membership register of the Kenya Hospital Association. 

According to the statement, more than 300 individuals were allegedly added to the members’ register and transported to an annual general meeting to vote in favour of certain board members. 

The doctors claim the memberships were paid for through a single lump-sum payment of Sh5 million, bypassing normal vetting and nomination procedures.

The consultants also accused hospital leadership of ignoring court orders issued in November 2025 in Milimani High Court Civil Case No. E293 of 2025, which barred the board, the chief executive and the company secretary from holding meetings, transacting with financial investments or initiating new capital projects while the dispute was pending.

They allege the hospital’s leadership nonetheless attempted to convene an annual general meeting in violation of those orders.

The statement also addressed the recent arrests of several individuals linked to the hospital, including veteran obstetrician Job Obwaka. 

The consultants said the arrests were likely based on evidence uncovered during the investigation, but suggested Obwaka may have been wrongly implicated because he was not serving on the board when the alleged manipulation of the members’ register occurred.

Despite appealing for presidential intervention, the doctors insisted they were not calling for a government takeover of the hospital.

“The hospital belongs to its members,” the statement said, adding that the solution lies in “free, fair and credible elections” for new board leadership.

The statement was signed by six senior consultants, including paediatrician Stephen Muhudhia, cardiologist Martin Wanyoike, endocrinologist Joel Toroitich, cardiologist David Silverstein, and paediatrician Florence Murila, alongside lawyer Christine Muthoga.