Official opening and functioning of the National Police Service Level IV Hospital (NPSH) has stalled following a back-and-forth over final payment and who is supposed to pay.
According to the Auditor General Nancy Gathungu’s 2023/2024 Audit report, Sh833.6 million remains to be paid to the contractor after the initial Sh400 million that was paid at the beginning of the construction.
National Police Service Hospital in Nairobi on April 6, 2025.
Photo credit: Evans Habil | Nation Media Group
In a meeting held at the end of March at Department of Defence (DoD) headquarters between Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Interior and National Administration officials led by Defence Cabinet Secretary Soipan Tuya and her Interior counterpart Kipchumba Murkomen it was resolved that a committee be established to thrash out the thorny issue of pending payments and subsequent opening of the hospital.
Initial attempts by the contractor to have DoD who supervised the construction that ended in the 2022/2023 financial year to take responsibility of the debt and commit to paying was declined.
Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu during a past event.
Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group
“Additionally, the status of the National Police Service Level IV Hospital (NPHS) in Mbagathi, Nairobi, was reviewed. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) oversaw the hospital’s construction and equipping before handing it over to the Interior Ministry in May 2024. The facility will provide healthcare services to the National Police Service (NPS), Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), and their dependents. To ensure its full operationalisation, the meeting established a Joint MoD-NPS Technical Committee (JTC)” CS Tuya said of the end of March meeting.
Those present during the meeting were the Chief of the Defence Forces, General Charles Kahariri, Principal Secretaries Patrick Mariru (Defence) and Dr Raymond Omollo (Interior), Vice Chief of the Defence Forces Lieutenant General John Omenda, Commander Kenya Army, Lieutenant General David Tarus, Inspector General of the National Police Service, Douglas Kanja among others.
The fully equipped and staffed hospital has been lying idle while sick and injured police officers suffer after a consortium of insurance companies retained to provide medical services to them stopped following failure by the National Police Service to remit Sh5 billion premium.
The police hospital is intended to provide medical services exclusively to members of the disciplined services in the same way the Armed Forces Memorial Hospital provides services to military staff.
The hospital was handed over to the then Interior and National Administration CS Kithure Kindiki by then Defence CS Adan Duale on 17th May 2023.
The Kenya Defence Force (KDF) spokesman Brigadier Paul Njuguna said there was a discussion and a joint committee established.
“There is an ongoing discussion on the hospital. There is a joint committee to review how the matter is going on,” Brig Njuguna said.
The auditor general in her 2023/2024 report expressed concern about the delay of the hospital's launch despite completion.
“The construction and equipping of the hospital were completed in the 2022/2023 financial years. Despite the hospital having been done and the commencement of recruitment of hospital staff, the hospital was not in operation at the time of audit in November last year,” the auditor General’s report says.
National Police Service Hospital in Nairobi on April 6,2025.
Photo credit: Evans Habil | Nation Media Group
Another such non-operational facility is the Border Police Unit camp hospital in Kanyonyo, Kitui County.
The 130 bed capacity level 1V hospital meant to cater for police officers injured during their operation in militia prone areas was constructed through the welfare fund contributions by administration police officers.
Although it was commissioned in 2023 by President William Ruto, it is yet to be operational.
