MPs hear harrowing testimonies of kidney trafficking in Uasin Gishu
The revelations came on the second day of the committee’s fact-finding mission. Members met the victims in an in-camera session meant to protect them while seeking justice.
For Emmanuel Kipkosgei and Amon Kipruto, the hope of breaking free from poverty ended in pain after they were tricked into donating their kidneys for money.
The two men from Eldoret, Uasin Gishu County, told the National Assembly Health Committee how they fell into the hands of a well-organised organ trafficking network that involved multiple hospitals in the town.
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The revelations came on the second day of the committee’s fact-finding mission. Members met the victims in an in-camera session meant to protect them while seeking justice.
The committee also questioned top police officials in Uasin Gishu and later grilled the management of Mediheal Group of Hospitals, which is at the centre of the allegations.
Kipkosgei is among the many victims suffering silently. He recalled being taken with 13 others to a posh house in Elgon View Estate, where they allegedly met a doctor who tried to persuade them.
“Kidogo daktari mwingine akakuja hapo akatu convince convince akatuelezea, me nikaona hiyo biashara itakuwa ngumu lakini mzee mwingine mweupe akatokea akatupea 50,000 cash kila mtu so me sikuwai shika pesa mingi hivyo nikaona ni kama nitapata pesa nyingi sana,” Kipkosgei said.
The Sh50,000 given upfront was enough to convince him. He and a friend underwent three weeks of tests at a hospital in Eldoret before being taken to Nairobi for more tests.
The operation, however, was carried out at a different hospital. By then, he had been given a new identity to conceal the procedure.
“Nilikuwa nimepromisiwa Sh1.2 million lakini nilipewa Sh400,000,” he added, explaining that brokers took a portion of the money.
Three days after the surgery, he was arrested and detained for four days on claims of being part of an illegal business.
He believes the arrest was staged to silence him. Kipkosgei recalled, “Kuwauliza wapi makosa hawaniambi kitu wananiambia wewe tuambie tu vile ulienda hii shughuli hivi na hivi.”
For Kipruto, the promise came when he was barely surviving on construction wages that were too little to sustain him. When a friend introduced the deal, he accepted without hesitation, only to be left with life-threatening health problems and a family struggling to cope.
MPs later toured Mediheal Hospital to assess the situation and directly question the management. The testimonies highlighted how vulnerable Kenyans are being exploited by organ trafficking schemes, leaving victims scarred both physically and emotionally.
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