Nairobi Governor Finds Bodies of 12 Babies in Hospital Store Room, Suspends Management

The governor of Kenya’s capital city of Nairobi suspended the top management of a maternity hospital after finding the bodies of 12 babies stuffed in boxes in a store room, rather than a mortuary, during an impromptu visit on September 17.

Gov Mike Sonko made the visit to Pumwani Maternity Hospital after members of the public reported of negligence in the labor ward and after he saw a cellphone video allegedly showing a hospital employee carrying bodies in boxes through hallways.

Sonko livestreamed several videos of the visit on Facebook. Wearing a casual, camouflage jacket and a hat obscuring his eyes, Sonko is seen in the footage walking the hallways of the hospital before meeting nurses and members of the public in a room. He is told that problems include under-staffing, doctors not coming to work, delayed Cesarean sections, and an overcrowded labor ward.

A consultant obstetrician gynecologist, Dr James Kamau, who was meant to be on duty, was not in the hospital during Sonko’s visit. In another video, Sonko, posing as the husband of a pregnant woman, tries to call Kamau, but an assistant refers him to another doctor. Sonko grills staff about the lack of a consultant on duty, telling them “mothers are suffering.” In the same video, Sonko is seen watching a clip on a phone that is said to show an employee carrying boxes allegedly containing the bodies of babies.

In a hallway, a mother tells Sonko she was charged for an ultrasound. Sonko confront hospital staff about the charges which he says are meant to be covered by the state.

Later, he is seen in a small store room where he and others uncover the bodies of 12 babies wrapped in polythene inside three boxes, according to the video. “That is inhuman,” someone is heard saying.

Sonko suspended the top management of the hospital, including Dr Kamau and superintendent Catherine Mutinda, according to Kenyan media.

A special cabinet meeting to discuss the revelations was held shortly after Sonko’s visit. Credit: Mike Sonko via Storyful