President Wiliiam Ruto:POOL
President William Ruto has firmly denied claims that some governors were coerced into signing agreements for the National Equipment Service Program (NESP), which aims to provide medical equipment to county governments across Kenya.
Speaking at a public event, President Ruto dismissed the allegations, stating that no governor was forced to sign any contract. He emphasized that the agreements were entered into voluntarily by the county leaders.
“Anybody who says that they were forced by the national government to sign whatever contract are liars,” President Ruto declared. “There is nobody who forced them to sign any contract.”
The President went on to stress that governors willingly joined the program, which involves seven suppliers who will provide medical equipment, drugs, and services to county health facilities. He further criticized those making the claims, saying, “You would be a fool to be forced to sign the wrong thing and then come and talk about it.”
Regarding the procurement process, President Ruto assured the public that it was done transparently and according to established procedures. He assured that the government had thoroughly costed the medical equipment, drugs, and services involved in the program with the help of experts, reinforcing that there would be no room for corruption or fraud.
“There will be no fraud. We have costed the equipment, we have costed the drugs, we have costed the services with experts. There was a procurement process between the counties and the Ministry of Health,” he added.
The NESP is designed to provide state-of-the-art medical equipment to county hospitals under a Fee-For-Service (FFS) model, with vendors responsible for supplying, maintaining, and upgrading the equipment at no upfront cost to county governments. Under this arrangement, contractors will be paid for their services in accordance with the gazetted Social Health Authority (SHA) tariffs.
Concerns from Governors:
The President’s remarks come in the wake of concerns raised by some governors, notably Nyeri Governor Mutahi Kahiga, who claimed that county governments had little to no choice in participating in the program. During a recent Senate session, Governor Kahiga questioned the voluntary nature of the agreements, asking, “Did we have a choice? The program is even open to private facilities. What happens if you do not join? Did we have a choice?”
However, the Ministry of Health and the Council of Governors (CoG) Chairperson, Ahmed Abdullahi, sought to clarify the situation. In a joint statement, both the Ministry and the CoG emphasized that the NESP would not impose any obligation on counties to partner with specific suppliers. They clarified that the program operates under the Fee-For-Service model, which allows counties to benefit from the medical equipment without incurring upfront costs.
“The NESP arrangement is the best option we had under the circumstances,” said Governor Abdullahi, highlighting the potential benefits of the program in enhancing healthcare services in counties.
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