20th June 2023 was a hot conversation as CS Health appeared before the Departmental Committee on Health and engaged with the Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (KEMSA) to address the alleged irregularities in the procurement process and the cancellation of the long-lasting insecticidal Mosquito nets at KEMSA.

Health Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha suspended National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) branch managers in specific areas.

This action was in response to the exposé by Daily Nation, NTV, and Citizen TV, which highlighted how rogue hospitals obtained substantial sums of money through suspicious medical camps targeting elderly patients.

Health Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha Wafula has defended her decision to suspend branch managers of the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) in certain areas where rogue hospitals stole millions of shillings through suspect medical camps targeting elderly patients.

“Why branch managers? I say that because branch managers are the people who are tasked with the responsibility of supervising, monitoring, and evaluating facilities within their purview, and reporting any issues to headquarters,” CS Nakhumicha told the National Assembly Departmental Committee on Health on Tuesday.

“Similarly, when claims are met, branch managers review the claims before they reach HQ,” she explained.

“I will stand by my decision; I will lead from the front. We may make some mistakes, but we will learn from them and move on. However, these are not decisions that need to be delayed. They have to be taken, and I want to believe that you are with me,” she added.

However, the committee disagreed with the decision to suspend the NHIF branch managers, stating that it was too little, too late.

The CS urged the committee to support her actions, insisting that in order to address the corruption at NHIF, they had to start somewhere, while also calling on investigation agencies to conduct thorough investigations.

“By the time we make final decisions, they will be based on the facts brought out by the investigations,” she emphasized.

Regarding concerns that her ministry is plagued by scandals, especially with KEMSA and NHIF, the CS acknowledged that the issues within the Ministry of Health are people-related.

“As much as we have systems in place, it is the same people who go around those systems to defraud public resources, so we must deal with the culprits. And remember, there is no other way,” she asserted.

She accused the media of jumping the gun, stating that her ministry had already commenced investigations into the NHIF heist. She mentioned that the media highlighted the issue before the final audit report was released, as they found the story sensational.

The CS alleged that the rot in NHIF payment claims is not limited to the six facilities that were highlighted.

“We have a big problem. It is shocking that over 60% of payments from NHIF go to private facilities. I am yet to be convinced that smaller private facilities perform more surgeries than KNH and all the public facilities combined,” the CS insisted.

Regarding the appointment of the NHIF CEO, the CS explained that it was a difficult decision, and settling on Dr. Samson Kuhora as the Acting CEO was based on his qualifications at that time.

“Bringing in a different person or recruiting someone from outside would have taken a long time due to the recruitment process,” she justified.

“You are aware of what happened during the recruitment exercise. We are facing a big problem, to the extent that someone wanted to manage our recruitment exercise and recruit themselves into office, planning who comes in as directors with them. We have a problem. But we have no option but to work together,” she added.

Endebess MP Hon (Dr) Robert Pukose disagreed with the CS, stating that there were senior officers at NHIF and within the ministry who could have acted as the CEO to ensure smooth operation.

“We disagree with the justification for the CEO. As a committee, we believe that there are senior officers, not just at KEMSA but within the ministry, who could have taken the position and ensured things ran smoothly,” Hon Pukose argued.

“You don’t choose someone who has in charge of claims at NHIF to go out and do a cover-up for himself.  We can see that we are still facing challenges,” he concluded.

However, the CS defended her decision, stating that she acted on the best technical advice received and conducted her own due diligence in appointing the acting NHIF CEO.

“But from the beginning, I want to let you know that when we chose the gentleman for the acting position, we were reorganizing ourselves in terms of top leadership and directors within the Ministry,” she clarified.

“That was the point where we were still looking at the officers within the Ministry to align ourselves and establish the directorates before appointing someone for NHIF,” she explained.