Family postpones burial after Governor Kihika fails to clear hospital bill
Rift Valley
By
Antony Gitonga
| Sep 07, 2025
A family in Naivasha has been forced to postpone the burial of their kin at the last minute after Nakuru Governor Susan Kihika failed to clear a hospital bill she had promised to settle.
As a result, the family of the late boda boda driver Francis Kamau has turned to members of the public for support so that they can raise the Sh0.8m pending bill.
Last week, while on a tour of Naivasha, the family and boda boda operators approached the governor, who publicly announced that she would assist in clearing the bill.
“From the records, SHA has accepted to pay over Sh200,000 and I will make sure that the rest is paid so that this man can be given a decent send-off,” said Kihika, leading to songs of joy.
According to the Chairman of Naivasha boda boda operators, John Gitonga, soon after the promise, the family and friends embarked on burial preparations in Tetu, Nyeri.
READ MORE
Big banks have lowest loan rates: CBK data
Kenya's exports to the US grow as countries' struggle with tariffs
Phone dealers sue Stanbic Bank for allegedly overcharging on Sh100m loan
Kenya, Nigeria and Egypt to benefit from Sh37 billion global fund
Banks defy digital tide to court rural borrowers
Ukraine, tariffs and the oil trap: What Washington is not saying
'You cannot grow an economy through taxation,' experts warn
How mega dam will increase Ethiopia's prominence in Kenya's power sector
Why two, three-bedroom units offer sweeter deal for property investors
Kenya set for first maritime training vessel from South Korea
He said that the deceased had been admitted to Kenyatta University Referral Hospital, where the bill rose to over Sh800,000 before he died last month.
“The deceased is an orphan and his family could not raise the bill, and when we approached the Governor she promised to settle it, so burial plans began,” he said.
Gitonga added that efforts to reach out to the Governor had been fruitless, forcing them to postpone the burial and seek ways of raising funds to settle the bill.
On her part, Margaret Wangari, the wife of the deceased, spoke of their agony after the burial was postponed at the last minute due to the pending bill.
She said that Kamau started complaining of stomach ache three months ago and was treated in different hospitals before succumbing last month.
“The body has been lying in the mortuary until the Governor promised to clear the bill, but she has not kept her promise and we are back to suffering,” she said amid tears.
An uncle to the deceased, Michael Irungu, called on politicians to stop playing to the gallery as families were undergoing untold suffering.
“We started burial arrangements soon after we were promised that the bill would be settled, but this has turned out to be another fake promise,” he said.
A senior officer from the county, however, defended the Governor, saying that the family did not involve them in the burial plans, though they had written a letter to the hospital seeking a waiver of the bill.
“Part of the bill was paid by SHA and we are working with the hospital so that the pending bill can be waived and the family can continue with the burial,” said the officer, who declined to be named.