Kenyatta National Hospital CEO Dr Evanson Kamuri during the handing over of 22 beds in support of the Adopt a Bed campaign donated by the National Social Security Fund at KNH on May 30, 2023.
A court order freezing the Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) CEO Dr Evanson Kamuri’s Sh4 million cash in a bank has been extended for a further six months pending completion of investigations on alleged corruption.
The money is held at Standard Chartered Bank (K) in the name of Jacqueline Kavete Mbuli, who has since disowned the cash and told court that she does not know why the sum was deposited in her account.
High Court judge Lucy Njuguna on Friday April 4 sided with the anti-corruption agency and ruled that there was need to continue freezing the funds until the investigators complete their probe on the source of the money.
The mystery money was deposited in Ms Mbuli's account in May 2024, according to legal proceedings of a forfeiture suit pitting the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission against the CEO.
Dr Kamuri wanted the court to lift the preservation order issued last year and direct the bank to transfer the amount back to his account.
He told court that the money was proceeds of his salary and private dermatology practice.
Ms Mbuli, for her part, informed court that she was not privy to the source of the funds and she did not have any claim or interest on the same.
She stated that she has never obtained any funds corruptly or unlawfully and she does not have any dealings with Dr Kamuri.
When she noticed funds had been deposited into her bank account, she informed the bank on May 24, 2024 that she was not expecting such funds and asked that the funds be reversed to the sender but the bank declined to reverse the transaction.
The bank account was frozen by court on July 30, 2024 following an application by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) pending investigations on Dr Kamuri.
Justice Njuguna extended the order after EACC said it was yet to finish the investigations on whether the money was acquired through corrupt conduct.
“In the circumstances of this case, there is absolute need to prevent the dissipation of assets under investigations, as such eventuality defeats recovery or forfeiture of such assets. Therefore, the preservation order will serve public interest, as opposed to being an infringement of respondent’s rights,” said Justice Njuguna.
She stated that the need to preserve the funds outweighed the concerns and contentions by Dr Kamuri, who wanted the court to unfreeze the account.
Kenyatta National Hospital CEO Evanson Kamuri.
The KNH CEO argued that the preservation order had caused “him and his family extreme hardship and depravity”.
Dr Kamuri contended that the order had occasioned him financial constraints and affected his day-to-day subsistence living, including challenges in financing his family’s education and his professional subscription fees to the Kenya Medical Association, which permits him to continue with his professional practice.
But the court ruled that preservation orders are of a temporary character and are neither forfeiture nor sequestration orders.
“This court is alive to the concerns that prolonged preservation of the assets may cause injustice. However, the right to fair trial is a double edged sword and the respondent’s rights must be balanced against the public interest. Should the money be transferred pending the determination of the investigations, the same would be rendered a mere academic exercise,” said the judge.
The court, however, noted that prolonged investigations could make the subject of investigations feel drained and depressed and violate their basic rights to privacy, property and dignity.
“Because of this, the court does not demean the respondents’ argument that the orders are causing them suffering and inconvenience. It is a plausible possibility and a legitimate worry,” said Justice Njuguna.
EACC told the court that there were crucial investigative points yet to be covered.
The commission said there was a need for an extension of the preservation order to enable the detectives to complete their investigations and to issue notices to Dr Kamuri to explain the alleged disproportion in assets vis-a-viz legitimate known sources of income.
At the same time, the court lifted another preservation order placed against Dr Kamuri’s account at Stanbic Bank with Sh1.1 million.
jwangui@ke.nationmedia.com
