Auctioneers yank patients from beds in raid at a Thika hospital over rent arrears

The brutal Wednesday operation, conducted by Kentrack Auctioneers with police support, was aimed at enforcing a court order over unpaid rent.

Witnesses and patients described a harrowing scene as the auctioneers, accompanied by young men, stormed the hospital.

They reportedly removed critical items such as beds, medical equipment, and food supplies, leaving the facility in disarray.

Lydiah Ayuma described a particularly upsetting incident in which her physically challenged daughter, who was receiving treatment for a brain tumour, was yanked from her bed and placed on a small plastic potty before the goons took her wheelchair away.

"They didn’t care that she was sick or that we are human beings," Ayuma said, expressing her anguish and helplessness.

Another patient described being thrown from her bed onto the floor while nurses could do nothing to help.

"They ripped the sheets from my bed, and one of the goons laughed as they tossed me aside like I was nothing," she tearfully recounted.

The auctioneers' actions not only caused distress for patients, but also significant damage to the hospital, with doors smashed and medical equipment vandalised or removed.

Dr. Isaac Chesoni Chetambe, the hospital's Director, estimates the damage at more than Ksh1.5 million.

Dr. Chetambe was outraged by the invasion, claiming that no prior eviction order had been served on him.

He criticised the operation as a violation of patient privacy and rights, emphasising the serious consequences for patient care.

"This is a gross infringement on our patients' dignity and well-being," he said.

The chaotic scene has left patients stranded without proper care or medication, prompting calls for government intervention.

The auctioneers' actions were in response to a court order to recover months of rent arrears, totalling to sh 500,000, a dispute between the hospital's proprietor and the landlord.

Efforts to contact the premises owner and the auctioneers for comment were unsuccessful.