Grace Njoki: From surgery to cell for exposing how new health system flopped

CCTV footagae of Grace Njoki Mulei being arrested by police at Ladnan Hospital in Nairobi as she sought medical services on January 23, 2025. The dramatic arrest of a woman by police on Thursday evening as she sought medical help at a hospital, and her subsequent dragging to a police station only to be released the next day without charge, has sparked outrage among Kenyans. Grace Njoki, a 61-year-old retired nurse, was arrested for storming Health Cabinet Secretary Deborah Barasa's office last week to plead her case, as well as that of other patients, who were unable to receive medical treatment after Social Health Authority (SHA) systems failed. Her dramatic arrest at Ladnan Hospital in Eastleigh, Nairobi, occurred as Njoki was in the process of booking her knee surgery, which was scheduled for Friday at the facility. The brutal behaviour of the police, her screams, and the helplessness of the medical staff compounded the situation for a woman suffering from a heart condition, hypertension, and diabetes. Screaming for help Her son, George Mulei, said his mother called him around 4 pm, screaming for help. READ: I was abducted, not arrested, Grace Mulei details ordeal with police "She said that she had been taken away from the hospital. I arrived at Ladnan Hospital an hour later and didn't hear from her until around 7 pm," he said. It emerged that the forceful arrest stemmed from an earlier incident when Njoki stormed the office of the Cabinet Secretary for Health in a desperate bid to raise the alarm about the state of the country's public health system. Njoki caused a stir on January 15 when she led a group of frustrated patients, including mothers with children, to the Afya House boardroom where CS Barasa was addressing the media. The group was protesting the inefficiencies of SHA, which they claimed had failed them as patients. Her only crime was standing up for the rights of thousands of Kenyans and patients affected by the inefficiencies of the controversial new healthcare system. In what he termed as a botched abduction, Njoki's lawyer, Johnstone Danie Jr, argued that she acted appropriately as a Kenyan who understands her rights and as a healthcare professional who witnesses the suffering of others and is determined to speak out. "She was in her right to go to those offices and make a statement because she is a citizen of this republic and a health professional who understands what the systems are and how to get them running," he said. READ: Grace Njoki freed on Sh10,000 cash bail He added, "When people are dying in hospitals simply because a payment has not been approved, when children born prematurely are at risk, when people waiting for dialysis are not getting it, what kind of reaction would you expect from a reasonable person?" With rising tensions over the spate of abductions in the country, Njoki's arrest only sent fear and panic to her family, who didn't know her whereabouts for about four hours. The lawyer stated they would move to court to hold the Ministry of Health, SHA leadership, and the police accountable for the incident. "This is nothing but a botched abduction. That's what it was. It was only later that it was developed into an arrest, which they could not justify," Danie added. "This whole hullabaloo was an attempt to intimidate her. We feel there might have been some feeling of being shamed or humiliated, and now they are taking it out on her, hoping the public isn't aware," the lawyer continued. Njoki was released on a police cash bail of Sh10,000 and instructed to appear in court on February 7. What began as a desperate call for attention to the dire state of the country's public health system quickly spiralled into a personal crisis for Njoki. Despite her efforts to highlight the struggles of Kenyans facing a malfunctioning healthcare system, she was met with retaliation in a move that can be seen as "shooting the messenger." After Njoki was arrested in a dramatic scene at Ladnan Hospital, she was taken to three police stations before she was finally booked at Capitol Hill Police Station. She spent the night at the police station before being released on Friday morning without any charges. According to witnesses and CCTV footage from Ladnan Hospital, the arrest unfolded between 3 pm and 5 pm. Grace Njoki Mulei with her son George Mulei after spending the night at Capitol Hill Police Station, Upper Hill on January 24, 2025. [Kanyiri Wahito, Standard] At 2.56 pm, Njoki is seen entering the hospital, seemingly unaware of the events that would unfold in the next few hours. By 4.35 pm, she is captured in the hospital's National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) accounts office processing her papers for surgery scheduled the following day. But the atmosphere changed when four plainclothes officers entered the room one after another. Their presence immediately disrupted the quiet operations. Their target: Njoki. A back-and-forth followed, and Njoki is seen on her phone in a moment of calm before the storm. She later walked into a boardroom next to the NHIF office. The officers followed closely behind her, their intentions clear. At 5.05 pm, the scene took a dramatic turn as more uniformed officers, armed and intent on their mission, flooded the boardroom. What followed was a chaotic and surreal sequence. Hospital staff watched helplessly as the officers forcibly apprehended Njoki, dragging her from the room. Her screams filled the air, echoing her terror. Her rights to know the reason behind her arrest, her right to healthcare, and her right to access a lawyer as stipulated in the Constitution were violated. The ordeal captured police officers determined to take Njoki at her lowest moment. She was subjected to victimisation for her criticism of the government's health insurance scheme. In viral videos, Njoki cries out, fearing that she was being abducted, as the officers did not disclose why they wanted her to go with them. Her voice trembled with desperation as she pleaded to be let go, while hospital staff and patients looked on, helpless and shocked at the unfolding spectacle. Cries grew louder The officers, undeterred by her frantic pleas, proceeded with ruthless efficiency, frog-marching her down the hospital's ramp walkway. As they dragged her out of the building, Njoki's cries grew louder, her fear palpable. Within moments, she was thrust into a waiting Subaru KCL 932B, and the car's doors were slammed shut behind her. The vehicle sped off from the hospital's entrance gate, leaving behind a stunned and shaken crowd in disbelief. It was a frightening ordeal of more than 15 hours. The Saturday Standard team later caught up with her outside Capitol Hill Police Station in Nairobi shortly after her release on Friday morning. ALSO READ: Drama as patients storm Afya House over SHA failures "My leg is injured. I was filling papers to process my treatment. Some people walked in and aggressively instructed me to go with them without explaining the reason. I insisted that I wasn't going anywhere until they told me what I had done," Njoki told The Saturday Standard. As the officers streamed into the hospital room, Njoki said she recognised a security officer whom she had previously encountered at Kenya National Hospital, and immediately sensed something was wrong. "That's when I knew I was being trailed. They even told me they knew where I live," she explained. "I was very scared, so I asked them, 'Why are you taking me? Why are you arresting me when you haven't told me anything?' They just carried me and pushed me into the car," she emotionally recalled. On the way, Njoki claimed that the officers manhandled her, calling her names to intimidate her. "It was an intimidating experience, and I really felt threatened. I kept screaming and shouting in the car, asking where they were taking me, what I had done, and why they were doing this to me. I felt threatened, scared, and abused," she said. "They told me I look like Mungiki because of my dreadlocks and my boots. They went round and round town." Njoki only discovered her offence after four hours. "They told me I was being arrested for causing a disturbance at Afya House," she added. She said the officers did not allow her to carry her medication, despite being hypertensive, diabetic, and suffering from a heart condition. The medicine was later brought to the police station when her husband and son arrived at the facility.

Grace Njoki: From surgery to cell for exposing how new health system flopped

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