Defiant NHIF interim board vows to stay put

"We will stay put until the investigations are complete," National Hospital Insurance Fund caretaker board acting chief executive officer has said.

Mr Adan on Thursday said he was confident government lawyers will lodge an appeal against the high court's decision to suspend the caretaker board.

Judge Weldon Korir, in suspending the board, ruled that President Kibaki had made the appointments without following due procedure.

The Kenya Medical Association (KMA) had moved to court to seek orders restraining the caretaker board from office.

KMA, in their applications, had argued that the President violated the provisions in section 4 of the NHIF Act that require the permanent secretary to the treasury or the representative be appointed to the board.

Acting Chief Executive Adan however said they will not leave the office despite of the court directive.

“The caretaker board is under the State Corporations act, which supersedes the NHIF act and we will stay in place for a period of time – until the investigations are over,” he told the Nation in an interview at his NHIF office.

He also confirmed that earlier in the week the former NHIF CEO Richard Kerich attempted to return to office following the recommendation of Medical Services Minister Anyang’ Nyong’o.

“The board stopped his attempts and issued him with the letter stating the same,” Mr Adan said.

On Monday, Prof Anyang Nyong’o, in a letter to Director of Public Prosecutions Keriako Tobiko, said Mr Richard Kerich should return to work as Parliament had dismissed a report on which his suspension .

Prof Nyong’o on Thursday morning reaffirmed his decision to reinstate Mr Kerich to office saying that the decision was informed by the NHIF act.

“I have not defied anybody, not the President or Prime Minister. There is nothing like that,” he said in a telephone interview with the Nation.

The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission has been investigating the Minister, former CEO Mr Richard Kerich and the Public Service minister Dalmas Otieno for their roles in the NHIF scandal.

NHIF was thrown in the spotlight when it became apparent that some clinics and hospitals had been wrongly accredited under the civil servants scheme, leading to uncovering of ghost clinics after having paid SH1.2 billion to these centres.

Last month, it was forced to terminate its contract with Meridian Medical Centre and Clinix Healthcare and circulated a new list of health facilities where civil servants will seek services.

Parliament rejected a report into the NHIF scandal which claimed public service minister Dalmas Otieno and Nyongo failed to stop fraud in the award of contracts to health providers.