The entrance to the War Memorial Hospital in Nakuru on October 28, 2023.
The Nakuru War Memorial Hospital remains closed despite the formation of an Interim Management Committee three months ago to oversee its reopening.
The hospital management on Tuesday told a court that outstanding electricity and water bills totalling over Sh2.3 million have delayed its reopening.
The bills reportedly accumulated since January, the period the hospital has remained closed.
Appearing before Deputy Registrar of the Court of Appeal Lina Akoth, one of the hospital’s directors Dr Simon Mwangi informed the court that the county government had demanded payment of these bills.
"As of September 5, the hospital owes the government Sh1.398 million for water consumption and Sh927,424 for electricity as of December 1," Dr Mwangi said.
In addition to the financial challenges, Dr Mwangi highlighted other issues impeding its reopening including the need for a gate and a burning chamber for waste disposal.
These issues, according to Dr Mwangi, were supposed to have been discussed during a meeting last week.
Since the formation of the interim management committee, several meetings have been held to address these concerns including conducting an inventory of the hospital between November 13 and 18. The stock report was submitted to the committee.
Sh1 billion hospital
The controversial January 2024 takeover of the Sh1 billion hospital sparked public outrage due to how the raid was executed. The county administration faced severe backlash with accusations of mishandling patients during the night raid.
The hospital embroiled in an ownership dispute between the Nakuru County government and private directors has since then been shut.
There were hopes for its reopening toward the end of the year after the Court of Appeal issued an order on October 1, forming the joint committee to manage the hospital's resumption.
The committee was to consist of two representatives from the county, two from the hospital's private management and one from the National Government.
In compliance with the court order, Nakuru County appointed County Secretary Dr Samuel Mwaura and Health Executive Roselyne Mungai.
The hospital directors appointed Dr Mwangi and Mr Rodger Joslyn to the committee, while the National Government, through the Attorney General, confirmed the appointment of Mr Peter Okombe Ongori as its representative on October 17.
However, despite these appointments, the hospital gates remain shut for more than two months after the court order.
The committee has been holding meetings to address several issues including taking inventory of hospital stock before the reopening.
This hospital takeover also influenced local politics with Nakuru Senator Tabitha Karanja calling for the impeachment of Governor Susan Kihika, a call that was rejected by the county assembly.
At the heart of the dispute is the process of renewing the hospital's lease.
The county claims the lease was procured fraudulently, leading to its cancellation and the subsequent takeover.
The hospital directors, however, maintain that they followed due process to extend the lease for another 50 years after the original lease expired in 2021.
Despite at least six court orders mandating the hospital's reopening, none have been complied with, prompting the hospital directors to file contempt proceedings against County Secretary Dr Samuel Mwaura and former Nakuru County Commander Samuel Ndanyi.
The case is ongoing.
