Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has sharply criticized the Ksh 50,000 cash bail granted to the suspects involved in the shocking invasion of Kitengela Sub-County Hospital during the Saba Saba Day protests on July 7, 2025.
Speaking at a State of Security address on, July 15, 2025, Murkomen revealed that hundreds of suspects have been arrested around the country in connection with the destructions that occurred during the Saba Saba protests.
Murkomen further emphasized that what happened at Kitengela Sub-County Hospital on July 7 where marauding gangs stormed the hospital’s operating theatre, interrupting an emergency caesarean section and terrorizing patients and medical staff was unacceptable.
He made it clear that hospitals should be respected as places of refuge for patients during vulnerable moments and violation of this privacy should be punished severely.
“In another reprehensible incident, marauding gangs stormed the operating theatre at the Kitengela Sub-County Hospital, interrupting an emergency caesarean section and terrorising patients and medical staff,” he stated.
Among those arrested were two people who were arraigned in connection with the Kitengela Hospital invasion.
Murkomen claims that the accused were released on a bail of Ksh 50,000 which he considers overly lenient.
“Two suspects have been arrested and arraigned. The two were granted cash bail of Ksh 50,000. These lenient bail terms are unacceptable. It is in hospitals that we seek refuge at our most vulnerable moments, and to infringe on this privacy is an offence most foul,” he argued.
The break-in at the Kitengela Hospital was caught on CCTV and drew condemnation from medical bodies like the Kenya Obstetrical and Gynecological Society (KOGS) which urged stronger protection for essential service providers.
The Interior CS also expressed desire that he wants future protests to be peaceful and added that police would also be held accountable if they use too much force against protestors.
In light of this, on July 18, 2025, Murkomen is scheduled to give Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja a policy directive regarding the use of force and guns by law enforcement.
