Confidentiality or cover-up? Why Nairobi Hospital opposed DCI's probe

The High Court in Nairobi has suspended a magistrate’s court order that allowed the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) to take away documents from  Nairobi Hospital’s directors and top management for an investigation.

Justice John Chigiti barred the DCI from accessing or removing any documents from the health facility in a case filed on Tuesday.

“Leave shall operate as a stay in line with prayer three,” he ruled.

In the case, the hospital management and board have drawn Attorney General Dorcas Oduor into the ongoing disputes.

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They have challenged a magistrate’s court order that permitted the DCI to take documents relating to the hospital, arguing that the orders obtained for the investigation were unlawful and intended to harass them.

According to their lawyer, Gitobu Imanyara, the Attorney General, through the Registrar of Companies, demanded documents from the hospital’s parent company, the Kenya Hospital Association, covering the period from 2019 to the present, in a letter dated 12 March 2025.

However, he stated that the letter was only served to his clients six days later.

Imanyara argued that while his clients were preparing the documents, they were served with court orders allowing the DCI to seize them.

He claimed that law enforcement officers raided the hospital, taking away documents and electronic devices, including computers and laptops.

“The investigations are not an honest endeavour to enforce criminal law. There are ongoing disputes over directorship and leadership between various members or officers of the applicant community. The investigations have been initiated at the behest of contenders in these disputes, with the aim of launching a coordinated attack against the current board and directorship,” Imanyara contended.

The hospital has sued the Chief Magistrate’s Court at Milimani, the Inspector General of Police, and the Attorney General.

Imanyara said that some of the information sought and documents taken away contain confidential advocate-client protected information and conversations.

At the same time, he further said, records of its patients were also taken, and the bank accounts, telephone numbers, and MPESA accounts of its directors and CEO have been frozen and/or blocked.

“The doctors among them cannot be reached by their patients, assistants and nurses thus exposing their patients to risk to their health and lives. The doctors are also unable to communicate with healthcare facilities as far as the healthcare of their patients is concerned,” he argued.

Nairobi Hospital acting CEO Felix Osano, in his supporting affidavit, claimed that the AG withheld the demand letter but sought orders because the hospital had allegedly refused to surrender it.

“The information contained in the documents or items or equipment and gadgets is privileged and confidential as it related to patient data as well as advocate-client communication,” said Osano.

In a separate case filed by lawyers Shadrack Wambui, and Danstan Omari, Osano claimed that the DCI was being used to settle scores.

“The powers of arrest vested on the respondents as police officers are being arbitrarily abused and misused to harass, intimidate, coarse and oppress us into acting contrary to the mandate and the Constitution of the Kenya Hospital Association Limited, me without justifiable cause,” he said.