When it takes an exposé for State to act on fraud and negligence

An exposé this week of fraud, negligence and horrors at Sisto Mazzoldi Hospital, Nakuru County, by senior crime and investigative reporter Ngina Kirori is a powerful illustration of the media’s watchdog role. 

Ms Kirori and her team spent two months piecing together information from former staff of the hospital-turned whistleblowers, families of patients, former patients and health officials, to tell the story of the lives of mothers lost in unclear circumstances, fake patients and ghost procedures used to defraud the Social Health Authority (SHA).

The story, which aired on NTV and was published on the NMG digital platforms and in the Daily Nation is also an illustration of the power of when the platforms converge for impact. With one story, the Nation team reached audiences on the various platforms.

Following the expose, Health CS Aden Duale said he had directed the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council to commence investigations into the claims of malpractice highlighted. He added that the hospital was already under investigations by SHA for alleged submission of inaccurate claims, and had been suspended from providing services under the scheme. 

He also revealed that the hospital had been downgraded from Level 4 to 3, based on its capacity. The Cabinet Secretary’s reaction to the report was a departure from his past, where he viewed any exposure of wrongdoing in agencies under his ministry as an attack. The video evidence presented in the NTV story was clearly too strong to be refuted. It is embarrassing that it has to take the media to expose what government agencies are mandated to keep watch of.

Thoroughly researched, well-told, irrefutable stories such as this are what set the credible media apart from many of the pretenders in the space. They invest time and professionalism in content that makes a difference to society, and their stories have an immediate impact on lives. 

When such scrutiny is intensified, there’s a bigger public benefit. It is unlikely that, after the Nation’s expose, other mothers going to Sisto Mazzoldi Hospital will be handled like Agnes Chelang’at and Jackline Chebet.

Stories like this should be the norm, rather than the exception for the Nation, which has some of the best journalists in Africa. It is hoped that the Nation will follow through with more investigations of many other health institutions to put everybody on the alert.

Can the media cast the net wider and spotlight many more cases, not only in health, but in other institutions, so that we have a ripple effect of action? The challenge for the Nation Editors is to give their audiences investigative stories more frequently.

Additionally, the Nation should take its role as an explainer of issues more seriously. It should break down the current narratives in the public sphere and provide space for informed debate.

For example, Kenya has moved from the hustler narrative to the becoming Singapore one. The narrative has divided Kenyans into the cynics, who see this as yet another slogan, and the optimists who are sold on the idea. The media is the sum total of the nation’s fears and aspirations.

What is lost between the two binary groups is what it entails. What does it mean for Kenyans? What path did Singapore take to be where it is? What is the story of Lee Kuan Yew, the man who transformed Singapore from Third World to First? What was his character? What were his values? Do those turning Kenya into Singapore exhibit these values? These are important questions to ask and get answers to, instead of merely reporting what the leaders say.

This is the opportunity for the media to provide space for informed debates. It must create a culture where issues are debated conclusively to foster a conscientious society where people are not merely excited by platitudes.

Additionally, the Cabinet recently approved the creation of a Sh5 trillion National Infrastructure Fund. What does this mean? Why is it important for the soon-to-be-established Fund to be a limited liability company, and not be operated under the existing corporate governance regime for state-owned enterprises?

The public must be educated about these seemingly difficult concepts to understand what is happening to their money and how it will be protected from thieving hands. After all, Kenyans have a sordid and painful history of mega projects.

Watch the NTV investigation "Wards of Evil" below:

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