Kemsa denies responsibility over seized expired drugs

Kemsa’s acting chief executive officer, Fredrick Wanyonyi, said only two of the 40 items impounded at a house in Parklands on February 20 belonged to the agency.

The two were latex gloves and x-ray films worth Sh288,295.

“Kemsa did not issue drugs,” said Mr Wanyonyi in a statement issued on Wednesday.

He said the gloves and the x-ray films were given to assist Enzaro and Inyali health centres in Vihiga County as part of Kemsa’s corporate social responsibility.

FRAUD

When the police and staff from the Pharmacy and Poisons Board (PPB) raided the home in Parklands, they also found machines they suspect were used to change the drugs' expiry dates and countries of origin.

At Parklands, the police and PPB officials also found a letter addressed to the Kemsa boss from South Maragoli Youths Development authorising Mr Gilbert Mboya to collect short expiry drugs from agency for a medical camp.

A suspect believed to be working with Mr Mboya was arrested and Karraigned on March 23 and is currently in custody at the Industrial Area Remand and Allocation Prison in Nairobi.

Kemsa officials are scheduled to meet the Senate’s Committee on Health over a report from the Auditor-General revealing that they had had expired drugs worth Sh352 million in their stores in the last financial year.