The immediate former Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) CEO Evanson Kamuri was loved and hated in equal measure. To his allies, he was a determined administrator who never shied away from making hard decisions.
To his critics, he epitomised the arrogance, mismanagement, and graft that have dragged Kenya’s largest referral hospital to its knees. On Tuesday, August 19, 2025, the Ministry of Health finally showed him the door, replacing him with Dr. Richard Lesiyampe in a decision widely seen as overdue.
Kamuri’s tenure was anything but smooth. He took over KNH with promises to reform the troubled facility, but quickly became synonymous with scandal.
Health PS Dr. Ouma Olunga speaking during the handover of the new CEO of KNH. Photo: Ministry of Health Source: Facebook
Procurement deals worth hundreds of millions were questioned by investigators, staff accused him of running the hospital like his personal bedroom, and patients bore the brunt of broken machines and mismanagement.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) at one point froze over Ksh 70 million in his bank accounts and obtained orders blocking the disposal of six prime properties allegedly linked to unexplained wealth.
By 2024, investigators said they were probing tenders worth Ksh 634 million, including the controversial oxygen plant and an incomplete ERP system that had already swallowed nearly all payments.
Inside the wards, the situation was even grimmer. The hospital’s oxygen system produced less than half of what was promised, leaving critically ill patients in peril and ballooning KNH’s power bills by half a billion shillings annually.
Newly installed KNH CEO Dr. Richard Lesiyampe. Photo: Ministry of Health Source: Facebook.
CT scanners and other diagnostic machines broke down repeatedly, forcing referrals to private clinics. To patients and their families, KNH became a place of anxiety rather than hope.
And when murders rocked the hospital in 2025, with two patients brutally killed inside its walls, the institution’s reputation hit rock bottom.
Workers fared no better.
Kamuri was accused of creating a toxic environment where dissent was punished and promotions favoured allies and alleged lovers. Reports suggested he had placed wives, girlfriends, and close friends in key positions.
Staff who died on duty had no insurance cover, with their families left to fight for compensation. His critics described him as a man who weaponised power, silenced whistleblowers, and crippled morale.
Kamuri’s downfall, therefore, was not sudden. It was the culmination of years of simmering scandals, financial probes, and mounting insecurity within KNH.
By the time Parliament raised concerns in June 2025 about confusion in leadership with two different individuals claiming to be CEO, it was clear his grip on the institution had loosened.
For a man who once symbolised stability at the country’s largest hospital, his exit marks a dramatic fall.
The question now is whether the investigations into his wealth and graft allegations will follow him into retirement or whether Kenya will once again let a powerful man fade quietly into the background, leaving the country’s biggest referral hospital to lick its wounds.
