Grace Mulei: ‘I did nothing wrong to deserve such mistreatment’
Grace Njoki Mulei during a press briefing at Capitol Hill Police Station in Nairobi after being released on January 24, 2025.
What you need to know:
- Kenyans have expressed outrage over the arrest with the incident drawing widespread condemnations.
- The footage shows the patient, Grace Mulei, fighting every step as three men pulled her by force.
A CCTV footage of individuals alleged to be police officers dragging a woman across the floor and forcefully bundling her into a waiting car has stirred outrage and disbelief.
Kenyans have expressed their outrage over the arrest with the incident drawing widespread condemnations from lobby groups and human rights organisations.
In a joint statement, the Kenya Medical Association, the Law Society of Kenya, and the Police Reforms Working Group called it “a violation of fundamental rights and an impediment to accessing essential healthcare. Every individual, regardless of their activism or opinions, has the right to healthcare without fear of harassment or arrest.”
The footage, which the Nation obtained from her family, shows her fighting every step as three men pulled her by force — her shoes scraping against the long, sloping ramp with her legs buckling under the weight of the struggle.
Three individuals, believed to be police officers due to their attire, followed closely behind, one of them clutching what appeared to be a gun. They put her inside a Subaru Outback vehicle.
Two hours before the chaotic arrest at Ladnan Hospital in Eastleigh, 59-year-old Grace Mulei, who lives with diabetes, hypertension, and heart issues, had visited the facility to apply for a knee surgery.
The facility is linked to the Social Health Authority (SHA) chairperson, Dr Abdi Mohamed. According to the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council’s website, Dr Mohamed is the “Co-founder and managing director/Chief Executive Officer of the Ladnan hospital, a position he has held since 2011.”
Here, Grace was a familiar face.
Last week on Wednesday, Grace, a retired nurse, led a group of frustrated Kenyans in storming the Ministry of Health building, demanding redress from the Cabinet Secretary over the inefficiencies of the SHA system at Kenyatta National Hospital.
On Thursday, January 23 a visibly shaken Grace fought to hold back tears as she recounted the ordeal she endured for over 10 hours. She was in the same outfits she wore when she was arrested on Wednesday, January 22 — a blue and green coloured sleeveless top, black pants, and grey boots.
After confronting the MOH officials and being captured by journalists at a media briefing, the clips went viral, making her a social media sensation. Her family even joked that she risked being abducted, especially given the recent wave of abductions in Kenya, which her arrest now follows.
In her telling, she made a weird observation.
“When I walked in, I had seen a gentleman sitting at the reception and I remembered seeing him at the Kenyatta National Hospital when I had gone to collect MRI (a medical imaging technology) results for my sick knee. We even had a conversation and he mentioned that he was a customer care representative. About ten minutes later, those people stormed in. I sensed I was being followed,” she says.
At 5:17 pm, George Mulei, received a frantic call from his mother.
“George kuna watu wamenikujia (some people have come for me), they are taking me by force,” she said.
George says a woman claiming to be a police officer told him to follow them to the place where they were taking his mother. At this moment, her phone was taken away from her, and she says it has yet to be handed back to her.
Grace Njoki and Diana Akoth (seated) when they stormed Health Cabinet Secretary Deborah Barasa’s media briefing at Afya House in Nairobi on January 15, 2024.
“We rushed to the facility (hospital) but she had already been taken away,” he says.
Sitting in the car, cut off from her phone, family, and legal support, she pleaded with her captors to set her free.
“I kept telling them that I am a patient: ‘Why don’t you let me get treated? If I have a case, I will present myself and write a statement.’ They didn’t want to hear that,” Grace says. “It is only at night that I got access to my hypertension drugs.”
“The man in the vehicle was very rude. He was threatening me. He kept abusing me. He talked about my shoes, and my hair saying I am “mungiki” (a member of an outlawed gang). It was an intimidating experience and I felt threatened. They took me to two other police stations before I landed here and I kept screaming in the car; shouting. They didn’t tell me anything and they were pushing, they were very rough on me,” she adds.
Johnstone Daniel, an advocate of the High Court and the family’s representative, said it was painstakingly difficult to determine her whereabouts or the charges against her.
“They took us around when we asked where they were taking her. We asked for the charges they were preferring against her, but they declared none. We asked them to give us clarity on who the complaint is, but they refused to do so. We asked to know who the investigating officer was, but they refused to make us aware. After the outcry on social media, I think, they allowed her to have access to her husband last night and to us this morning (Friday, January 24). She did not record a statement. I was very categorical when they were in the hospital that she was exercising her Article 49 right, to remain silent,” he says explaining that he had managed to speak with her before her phone was taken away.
“Today (January 24) the intention had been we would be going to court to find out what charges had been preferred against our client. And then to take plea and move forward. We did a bit of a run around in the morning because they were not clear on the movement they wanted to take. When we met the investigating officer, he made us aware that they hadn’t had a conversation with the office of the director of public prosecutions and for that reason, they could not be certain whether they would bring her to court” he says.
Grace Njoki and Diana Akoth (seated) when they stormed Health Cabinet Secretary Deborah Barasa’s media briefing at Afya House in Nairobi on January 15, 2024.
Now, Mr Daniel says that they will be discussing the next course of action.
“Right now, we need to be clear about her operation. Then we will be holding accountable the entire ministry of Health, the leadership of SHA and the police. This is nothing but a botched abduction,” he says.
A cash bail receipt of Sh10,000 seen by Nation indicates that the 59-year-old was being accused on a charge of “creating disturbances in a manner”.
“There’s no proper charge sheet. What they're claiming is they're doing an investigation. By February 7, when we show up in court, they will have a proper charge sheet and they will be able to present it to court,” he explains.
According to the retired nurse, her actions were inspired by the oath she took as a medical professional. “I don’t think that I deserved that kind of treatment. I didn't abuse anybody. The only thing that I said is that SHA is not working and that is the truth. I was at KNH and met very many struggling Kenyans.”
