Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has criticised the government’s decision to implement the Social Health Authority (SHA), terming the move rushed and unnecessarily expensive.
Speaking during an interview with NTV on Sunday, Gachagua argued that upgrading the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) would have been a more cost-effective solution, potentially saving taxpayers billions.
According to Gachagua, experts had advised that enhancing the NHIF would cost between Sh700 million and Sh800 million—significantly less than the Sh104 billion allocated for the SHA. He alleged that the rapid implementation of the new system was motivated by ulterior motives.
“Kenyans need to speak out. Experts told me it was possible to improve the existing system at a cost of between Sh700 million to Sh800 million. Yet we are spending over Sh100 billion,” he said.
The former deputy president further claimed that the rush to implement the SHA pointed to possible corruption.
“From where I sit, when I look at the whole rush of this SHA thing, it is because of this Sh104 billion. There’s a conflict of interest, and the whole thing is not straight,” he added.
Gachagua also criticised the lack of public participation in the rollout of the SHA, emphasising that policies should reflect the views of the people they aim to serve.
“Public policies are meant for the public, not for bureaucrats. If there is a lot of resentment or rejection, it is the administration’s responsibility to consider these views,” he said.
He raised concerns about reports of coercion, condemning government officials who have allegedly threatened to withhold services from citizens who do not register for the SHA.
“I have seen an advisor in the president’s office telling people their children will not go to school unless they register for this programme. That is coercion and intimidation,” he said.
Gachagua argued that good policies should attract voluntary participation. “If something is good, people should be rushing to register. But if you have to intimidate people, then the programme clearly has issues.”
Reflecting on his tenure as deputy president, Gachagua defended his decision to refrain from supporting certain government programmes, which he believed were questionable.
“I cannot defend corruption. The president said I failed to defend government programmes, and he is right to a certain extent. But I only defended programmes that were above board,” he said.
He challenged the new Deputy President, Kithure Kindiki, to account for government decisions.
“If the deputy he [the president] has picked can defend theft and corruption, let him go ahead. But I cannot defend such things,” he said.
