How the battle for supremacy left Nakuru War Memorial Hospital in ruins

The management and staff of War Memorial Hospital celebrated after winning a dispute with the county government of Nakuru over ownership of the hospital’s 27-acre land in Milimani Estate.

In the celebrations, the team, in the company of Nakuru residents, politicians and human rights activists, stormed the hospital on Thursday afternoon to take it back after a two-year wait.

The celebrations were, however, cut short when they reached the hospital’s gate.

The group realised what they had lost since January 23, 2024, when the county government shut down the hospital and claimed ownership of the land.

The rusty gates painted a picture of an unrecognisable, abandoned, and crippled health facility, a once-vibrant hospital that served millions, including foreigners, for over 100 years.

A walk through the hospital’s compound was sad; the hospital was not only physically depleted, but had also lost the goodwill it had established for over 100 years.

To get to the hospital building, the team had to cut through the overgrown grass, peep through thickets and rake through a pile of leaves and mud to reveal what was once a pathway to the hospital.

Inside the facility, everything was ‘dead’; There was no electricity, no water, and the ward floor and beds were dusty and stuffy. It was dark inside.

Furthermore, the control rooms and reception areas had no computers, and some of the signage was damaged.

“It will take a lot of resources and time to revive this hospital. We will have to pay for the electricity and water bills, renovate the hospital, purchase equipment and computers and look for our former staff,” said Dr Simon Mwangi, the hospital’s director.

According to the hospital’s CEO Patricia Musale, the facility also lost another thing: the trust from residents and patients.

She recalled how the patients were forced from the hospital when the county took over in January 2024, when they invaded it at around 3 am.

Further, on February 1, 2024, she recalled that goons were allowed to attack and take over the hospital for three days, just hours after the then County Commander Samuel Ndanyi reopened the hospital.

“Fear was instilled, something that we could not guarantee for our patients by then, noting that patients were forced to leave the hospital,” she noted.

In a petition filed by the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) seeking a declaration that Governor Susan Kihika was unfit to hold public office, the society claimed that Kihika failed the integrity test by allowing the hospital to be closed.

The society documented that the October 27, 2023 invasion of the hospital and the January 23, 2024 shutdown resulted in patients being discharged and over 300 staff losing their jobs.

“At least 22 patients were forcefully discharged. The county government caused panic and anxiety, and patients feared seeking treatment from the hospital,” submitted LSK.

The society noted that of the discharged patients, two were C-section mothers fresh from maternity and one C-section mother in her third postoperative day.

They further noted that there was one prematurely delivered infant, one critically ill infant and others in urgent need of medical care.

“Four patients were critically ill and in oxygen support while others were in various wards with various health conditions,” noted LSK.

Was the invasion, takeover and shutdown of the hospital fair or was it uncalled for? Was it necessary to close a hospital for almost two years?

Nakuru residents continue to ask themselves the same question. Others still fear that the verdict that returned the hospital land to private management would not be honoured.

“We hope that the governor will for the first time obey court orders. We note that she disobeyed eight other orders that directed her administration to allow the hospital to be reopened,” said Dr Julius Kariuki, a leader in Nakuru.

How did Nakuru residents find themselves in a situation where a health facility was closed for over two years?

The whole saga began in October 2023, during the county government’s first invasion. The same was aggravated in January 2024, when the county government shut the hospital down.

After the shutdown, the county government claimed ownership of the land where the hospital stands, leading to protracted criminal and civil court cases in Nakuru and Nyahururu.

Since then, several failed efforts have been made. An order was issued in February that year, but on the same day, hundreds of goons attacked, chasing away staff from the hospital.

Eight court orders were issued, and advisories were issued by judges for the hospital to be reopened, but nothing was forthcoming.

No one was allowed in, and patients were forced to seek healthcare elsewhere, including Nairobi and Eldoret counties.

Even during the trial of the land case in Nyandarua, Judge Joseph Mugo broke his silence, expressing his concerns at how the hospital matter was being handled.

The judge did not shy away from calling out Governor Kihika for discussing the case in public when the Senate Committee on County Public Service Accounts summoned her.

He regretted that, while mentioning the hospital, Kihika categorically stated that the county government had no urgency to reopen it.

“Did you watch the Governor in the Senate when she said they were not interested and there was no urgency in reopening the hospital? That in itself amounts to Contempt of court,” he pointed out.

He said he was in a crowded hospital in Nakuru, and people he spoke to complained about the closure of the War Memorial.

“The people said they were suffering and I suffered the same fate. I am lucky that I can go to Nairobi and get medical services; what about vulnerable people?” he posed.

His desire for the hospital to be reopened was also captured in his judgement on Thursday, when he urged the county government to withdraw its security from the hospital and allow it to reopen.

Kihika had defended the hospital’s closure before the Senate and vowed never to allow its reopening, “under my watch”.

“The claims that the closure had crippled the health system in Nakuru and that patients in public hospitals were sharing beds are rumours and untrue,” she stated.

Kihika told the Senate that the county government could not allow the hospital to illegally run on government land, something that has not been ruled against her, when the court declared that the land belonged to the private management.

Despite her denial, the county admitted in an April 2025 report that it did not have Intensive Care Unit (ICU) beds at the main hospital, Nakuru Level V (PGH).

The report from the Department of Health revealed that PGH only HAD 6 ICU beds, while the ideal capacity was 20, creating strain on emergency services.

A spot check by The Standard also confirmed that patients were still sharing beds at PGH.

Nakuru Senator Tabitha Keroche insisted that reopening the hospital could ease the burden on other hospitals in the county.

Amid the ongoing court battles, The Standard reported a standoff between the county leadership and the hospital’s management after they failed to agree on who would manage the hospital.

This followed a Court of Appeal order of October 1, 2024, directing the hospital to be reopened  under a joint board management.

“The board will have five members; two from the county, two from the hospital and a national government representative,” ruled Judges Mohamed Warsame, Weldon Korir, and Paul Gachoka.

Roger Joslyn, another director of the Hospital and the chair of the board, told Deputy Registrar of the Appellate Court, Lina Akoth, that they had disagreed over how the hospital would be run.

He said they had reached a consensus that, after putting things in order, the county government would withdraw from the hospital and leave it to private management.

However, he said the county government deployed its security personnel to man the hospital in an alleged bid to take full control.

“We have been denied access in some critical parts of the hospital. I want the court to, however, note that nothing in the hospital belongs to the county, but they want control,” he added.

In response, County Secretary Samuel Mwaura maintained that they were following the court orders on joint management and that withdrawing the personnel would be in contravention of those orders.

Fear was also inflicted on the hospital management and sympathisers who faced death threats after speaking against the closure.

The suspected goons would also reappear every time the management sought access to the hospital.

Former Nakuru West Sub County Police Commander Francis Wahome confirmed that Musale had filed a report on January 24, 2024.

“We have received a death threat report. The matter will be investigated,” said Wahome.

Dr Mwangi also received threats immediately after the county enforcement officers took over the hospital on October 27, 2023.

He said he was called and texted by two strange numbers and warned that he would be killed for allegedly attempting to grab public land.

He reported the threats and submitted the two numbers at Nakuru Police Station. His report was booked vide OB number 84/1/11/2023.

No arrests have been made to date.

The verdict giving the hospital back to private management now leaves Kenyans with questions about whether it was worth it.