President William Ruto has suspended, with immediate effect, Mediheal Founder Dr Swarup Mishra as chair of the Kenya BioVax Institute.
In an official statement dated Friday, April 18, the president revealed that the suspension follows a series of investigations over unethical activities involving the recent cases of organ trafficking.
''The suspension shall remain in force pending the outcome of investigations into serious allegations of unethical and illegal activities involving kidney transplant procedures at Mediheal Hospital and Fertility Centre in Eldoret,'' the statement read in part.
An exposé by Deutsche Welle, German media ZDF, and ‘Der Spiegel’ international media houses, revealed that Kenya was at the center of an organ trafficking syndicate with recipients paying up to $200,000 (Ksh25.9 million) for an organ transplant.
According to the investigative piece, both the young yearning to make money and the old desperate for a life-saving organ were exploited in the syndicate.
DW revealed that an international network coordinates the operations, finds local donors through paid referrals, and in some cases, the donors are allegedly flown in from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Pakistan.
Investigations revealed that vulnerable Kenyans, often desperate for money, were exploited to sell their kidneys for as little as Ksh294,000. The recipients of these kidneys mainly came from countries like Germany and Israel.
According to the investigations, the donors were often misled, signing documents they couldn't understand, and many were left with severe health complications post-surgery.
Reacting to the investigations, Mediheal's Vice President said that all organ transplants in the facility were conducted within the law.
Speaking at Spice FM on Wednesday, April 16, the VP claimed that patients who go to the hospital for organ transplants were the ones responsible for looking for a donor, a process she denies the hospital is involved in.
In the suspension statement, President Ruto assured Kenyans of the government's responsibility to uphold its integrity in healthcare and public safety.
''The President reaffirms the Government's commitment to fighting corruption, including upholding integrity in healthcare, public safety, and justice for victims,'' Ruto asserted.
Mishra had been appointed by the President to head the BioVax Institute Board in November 2024, a role he was to serve in for the next three years.
