President William Ruto has suspended Swarup Mishra as the chairperson of the Kenya BioVax Institute.
In a statement dated Friday, April 18, the suspension takes effect immeditely, to allow investigations into allegations of organ trafficking at Mediheal Hospital in Eldoret.
‘’The suspension shall remain in force pending the outcome of investigation into serious allegations of unethical and illegal activities involving kidney transplant procedures at the Mediheal Hospital and Fertility centre in Eldoret,’’ said State House Spokesperson Hussein Mohamed.
Mishra was appointed to chair the Kenya BioVax Institute in November 2024.
The former Kesses Member of Parliament has come under scrutiny after Mediheal Hospital, where he is a founder, was linked to an alleged organ trafficking ring.
On Thursday, the Ministry of Health suspended kidney transplant services at Mediheal Group of Hospitals and redirected patients to eight other licensed facilities, including Kenyatta National Hospital and Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital.
In a statement, the ministry said the move followed “credible” concerns from both the government and members of the public regarding the facility’s adherence to ethical standards in transplant procedures.
Mediheal Hospital has however denied allegations of involvement in a global organ trafficking syndicate, which was exposed by German broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW).
“Mediheal wishes to categorically state that the facility strictly adheres to the legal guidelines and the procedure of the hospital,” Maryline Limo, the Group’s Vice President in charge of operations said on Spice FM on Wednesday, April 16.
“We want to make it absolutely clear that the patients come with their own donors to the facility. The hospital is not involved in the sourcing and selection of donors,” she added.
According to DW, some donors claimed they were misled and underpaid, receiving far less compensation than promised for their kidneys.
Investigations into the Eldoret-based facility are ongoing.
