THE SHAMING LEVELS OF CORRUPTION IN KENYA (PART II)

One would stand forgiven to think that the corruption kingpins in Kenya would at least shy away from, or have a shred of humanity to spare the sick and the dead. But the bitter truth is that they too haven’t been spared from the tentacles of corruption threatening to overwhelm the country.  It is absurd, the soaring level of moral decadence that can assail a state.

Nairobi city residents carrying a coffin during the protest against the city's cemetery scandal

At the time of putting together this piece of writing, millions of Kenyans are on the receiving end of yet another scum in the making. The NHIF scandal it is. The National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) is the organization mandated by the government to maintain a health insurance kitty for the civil servants and teachers.  Monthly remittances are made to the national health insurer through deductions made on employees pay slips. Any Kenyan civil servant or teacher who falls sick visits a health facility and gets treated and the subsequent cost is borne by the insurer. If anyone thought that everything could flow this smoothly for long, am afraid they were wrong.

NHIF Boardroom wrangles, which played out before the glaring cameras for all to see, were enough indication that there was more than met the eye. It was definitely not business as usual at the national health insurer. Reports surfaced of how two little known clinics got the lion’s share of the funds while the major health institutions were allocated insultingly low amounts. This even as it emerged some of the clinics said to be operational across the country were ghost clinics. If that is not a clear signal of fraud playing out, then I don’t know what is.

It is frightening to think that a citizenry can starve, their children are denied an education, and when they fall sick, they can’t access treatment since their insurance money was plundered. Yet that is not all, even in death, they cannot rest in peace, as was rudely confirmed by the Nairobi cemetery scandal!!! Thanks to the disgracing levels of corruption in the country.

patients in a hospital ward in Kenya

The mention of the Nairobi cemetery scandal makes one blush with shame on behalf of its authors. One finds it hard to believe that anyone would be so cold hearted as to extend their greed this far.

The city council of Nairobi set out to purchase new cemetery land, since burial space at the city’s existing cemetery, Lang’ata, was nearing exhaustion.  Good intentions were soon to turn ill, in what became one of the council’s biggest scams.

A pricey piece of land was purchased and to the rude shock of Kenyans, it was worth way much less than it was bought for. And that is not all, the piece of land was very rocky and it didn’t take a college degree for anyone to figure out that it was definitely not fit to be a grave yard!!!

Upon the surfacing of reports on the looming scandal, scores of agitated citizens took to the streets of Nairobi in protest. The situation was surely befitting the proverbial move from the frying pan to the fire. 

Nairobi residents were left grappling with the nearly exhausted space in Lang’ata cemetery, coupled with the fact that there wouldn’t be any new grave yard just yet. Apparently, citizens would not Rest In Peace, or so it seemed; corruption troubled them even in death!!!  

If you imagined you’ve just read the end of it, am afraid it is not so. At least not until you’ve read of how some members of Kenya’s legislative assembly are supposedly being bribed to support or overturn bills that favor some at the expense of others. Surely, can it get worse?  Stumble on the details in the third and final part of this article.