Manyora freed on sh2m bond over Sh516,000 Nairobi Hospital tender fraud

Embattled former Nairobi Hospital board chair Herman Manyora. [File, Standard]

Embattled former Nairobi Hospital board chair Herman Manyora has been freed on a Sh2 million personal bond by a Nairobi court after denying a Sh516,000 hospital tender fraud charge. 

Manyora, a University of Nairobi lecturer and prominent political analyst who was elected Chairman of the Kenya Hospital Association (KHA) Board, which runs Nairobi Hospital, in June last year, appeared before Milimani Senior Resident Magistrate Paul Mutai, where he denied one count of cheating contrary to Section 315 of the Penal Code.

His arraignment on Wednesday morning came hours after DCI officers arrested him on Tuesday evening and held him overnight at the DCI's headquarters at Mazingira House along Kiambu Road, in connection with the Nairobi Hospital tender matter.

According to prosecutors from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), the case arises from investigations by the DCI’s Economic and Commercial Crimes Unit (ECCU).

The court heard that Manyora allegedly used fraudulent tricks to convince complainant Josphine Luceno Kavulani that he would facilitate the award of a hospital engineering tender to her firm.

The charge sheet states that between August 15 and October 30, 2024, within Nairobi County, he allegedly obtained Sh516,000 from Kavulani as payment to secure the award of tender number TNH/ITB/016/24/ENGINEERING to her firm, Sipho Construction Limited, money she would not have paid were it not for the alleged misrepresentation.

He denied the charge, prompting the court to release him on a personal bond of Sh2 million with two contact persons pending further proceedings.

Manyora's election as KHA Chairman followed the unanimous removal of Dr Barcley Onyambu during a special board meeting held on June 30, 2025, a succession that itself was mired in legal wrangles, with courts at various points suspending and reinstating his appointment amid a fierce governance battle at the premier healthcare facility.

Several witnesses are lined up to testify for the prosecution, among them the complainant Kavulani, Gilbert Nyamweha, Margaret Muiyro, Nelson Thiongo, and the investigating officer, alongside other potential witnesses.

Magistrate Mutai directed that the matter be mentioned on April 13 for directions.