The Ministry of Health has stopped the suspension of the CEO of KU Hospital, Ahmed Dagane.
The hospital’s board had on Thursday written to Dagane asking him to proceed on leave until further notice.
It also appointed an acting CEO and directed him to remain in office until further notice.
The ministry on Friday contacted to hospital’s leadership and asked that the CEO remains in office for now.
In a letter seen by The Star, Dagane wrote to the board confirming he would remain in office and instead take his annual leave in March.
He said the decision to force him to go on leave was made in bad faith.
“I wish to inform you that in consultation with our parent ministry (MOH) both the Principal Secretary and the Cabinet Secretary of Health have directed that I remain in office. Therefore I will proceed on my annual leave during my preferred period in March 2025,” he said in a letter to board chair Prof Olive Mugenda.
Dagane confirmed to the Star he wrote the letter.
In an exclusive interview, he said his suspension was linked to succession politics.
His first term expires in July next year and is renewable.
The final term of the hospital’s board chair will end in March 2025.
The Kenyatta University Teaching Referral and Research Hospital (KUTRRH) is run by a CEO and a board of management made up of a non-executive chairperson appointed by the President.
The CEO said the board’s decision to force him to go on leave was against the Public Service Human Resource and Procedural Manual (2006), and KUTRRH’s internal HR policies.
They state that “leave days are not accumulative and/or commutable beyond prescribed limits in service regulations.”
He said the decision of the board also contravenes the Employment Act by imposing a compulsory leave thus infringing on his civil liberties.
He said he will take his leave during the Ramadhan in March, before the financial year ends in June.
“Traditionally, I have utilised my leave during the Ramadan period and have taken my leave in March of this year. Therefore, I do not have accumulated leave days. Intend to utilise my leave days in March 2025, as is customary for me to align my leave with the Ramadhan period. The Board's decision not only contravenes the particulars of the aforementioned circular but also infringes upon the Employment Act by imposing a compulsory leave that violates my employee rights, civil liberties and religious observances,” his letter to the board states.
In suspending Dagane, the board had said he failed to implement critical board decisions which affected the running of the hospital.
"In this regard and in compliance with circular Ref:O P/CAB.2/1 of September 27, 2023. the board found it prudent that you proceed on leave on your accumulated annual leave days for the FY 2023-2024, totalling 25 working days with immediate effect from the date of this letter," said board chair Prof Olive Mugenda in a letter dated November 28, 2024.
Dagane said one of the issues related to procurement of Jubilee Health Insurance Limited to provide staff health cover. He said it was above board.
The board has since cancelled the tender, and the hospital staff are currently without cover.
He also mentioned the board’s concerns with the opening of the hospital’s cancer centre and Gatundu Hospital Annex, which he did not implement.
Dagane told The Star he refused to implement some decisions because they were unprocedural.
“I have consistently communicated to the board that the resolutions of the ad hoc committee concerning these projects were procedurally and legally irregular,” he said.
“I have consistently sought guidance from the Public Procurement and Regulatory Authority (PPRA) on procurement matters and the parent ministry (MoH) on budgetary constraints that hinder the lawful execution of these resolutions in my capacity as the accounting officer,” he added.
Dagane said he has no problem with the board except one member who “has assumed the role of the CEO and has been involved in the daily operations of the hospital and is present daily even on Sundays.”
“But the government is aware and they're dealing with that issue,” he said.
Dagane told The Star he felt he has a great vision for the hospital, which receives patients from 22 countries outside of Kenya.
“We are also ensuring that no Kenyan travels abroad seeking health care. They can come here because we have the talent. We have the expertise,” he said.
The hospital is also seeking the coveted Joint Commission International(JCI) Accreditation.
“We will be the first public hospital in this region. Because JCI accreditation is only limited to a few private hospitals in the region. So that is something that I'm working very closely with members of management. We have a committee. And as somebody who lived and worked in the U.S. and who is well versed with those standards, I want to make sure that that is introduced here,” he said.
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