Grace Njoki, one of the women who interrupted Health Cabinet Secretary Dr. Deborah Barasa’s press briefing at Afya House last week, has been arrested for causing a disturbance.
Njoki is currently being held at Capitol Hill Police Station, previously known as Nairobi Area. She was arrested while seeking medical care at a hospital in Eastleigh.
Her son, George Mulei, had earlier reported that his mother was taken while applying for knee surgery at Ladnan Hospital.
“While she was applying, she called me, panicking and saying that people claiming to be DCI officers had ‘come for her.’ I rushed to Ladnan Hospital, but when I got there, they told me she had already been ‘taken.’ We don’t know where she is now,” George said in his alert to the media.
In a later interview with Citizen TV, he shared that his mother has serious health issues that could worsen due to the stress from her unexpected arrest and treatment by the police.
“My mom has high blood pressure, diabetes, and a heart condition. The trauma from this situation is affecting her, and I’m really worried about her health. I just want her to be safe and released, and to know what charges are against her. She deserves her day in court, but the way they treated her was harsh. We appreciate Ladnan Hospital for trying to help, but the police were very aggressive,” George explained.
The family lawyer, Johnston Daniel Junior, mentioned that police have forced Njoki to write statements under pressure, and he is not aware of their content. He added that she is expected to be charged with creating a disturbance and resisting arrest, and that she has been denied cash bail. So far, only her husband has been allowed to visit her at the police station.
He dismissed the accusations, stating that Njoki’s actions at Afya House were simply those of a concerned citizen exercising her rights by visiting public government offices.
“The son got a call from her around 5 PM from police officers who were pretending to have a discussion with her, but then they arrested her. They did not identify themselves, explain the charges, or wait for her lawyer to arrive. They have pressured her to write statements that we are unaware of. We reject any claims they say she has made,” he said.
“Additionally, this is a woman who was coming to schedule a leg operation for tomorrow. She was speaking with her doctor today to confirm it. It is inhumane to send 12 to 15 officers to arrest her over charges that wouldn’t lead to more than six months. They haven’t even tried to ask her to come in voluntarily, and she has refused.”
Njoki was one of two women who last Wednesday went to the Ministry of Health to express their concerns about the lack of progress in establishing the Social Health Authority (SHA).
They voiced their frustrations with the new health coverage, which they claimed was ineffective.
They also complained about having to navigate through various hospital offices and being forced to visit SHA offices without any success.
