Willis Otieno backs Kibagendi in clash with Duale
Lawyer and politician Willis Otieno has thrown his weight behind Kitutu Chache South MP Anthony Kibagendi after a heated altercation with Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale over the Social Health Authority (SHA) crisis.
In a statement shared on his X account on Tuesday, October 14, 2025, Otieno accused Duale of evading accountability by resorting to theatrics whenever he is confronted with policy-related questions.
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Watch: Drama as CS Duale, MP Kibagendi clash over health fraud claims
Otieno noted that instead of addressing valid concerns about the authority’s operations, funding, and the closure of certain health facilities, Duale often engages in confrontational exchanges that derail meaningful discussions.
He said this pattern of behaviour reveals an unwillingness to take responsibility or offer transparent explanations to Parliament and the public.
The outspoken lawyer further suggested that such diversions are a hallmark of leaders who feel cornered by legitimate scrutiny, adding that the public deserves honest and fact-based responses from government officials rather than political theatrics.
“Why is it that every time Kibagendi poses substantive, policy-oriented questions to CS Duale about the SHA, the Cabinet Secretary promptly abandons the substance and retreats into diversionary theatrics, suddenly proclaiming that he has ‘closed my hospitals,’ hospitals which, quite frankly, seem to exist only in his fertile imagination? This persistent deflection betrays an inability or unwillingness to engage on the merits of policy. It’s the classic tactic of a cornered official: when confronted with inconvenient questions, manufacture personal drama to escape institutional accountability,” Otieno stated.
Altercation
Otieno’s sentiments come shortly after a tense confrontation between Duale and Kibagendi during a National Assembly Health Committee session that briefly came to a standstill.
During the exchange, Duale accused Kibagendi of being linked to two health facilities that were recently closed over fraudulent medical claims under the SHA.
“I have closed your hospitals,” Duale shouted during the heated session.
Also watch: Willis Otieno faults Duale after convening meeting to clear NHIF debts
Kibagendi immediately dismissed the allegations, calling them false and politically motivated.
“Where, I do not own a hospital. You and your friends are stealing from SHA. Kenyans need to know, answer the questions,” he fired back as the session was temporarily halted to restore order.
Duale maintained his stance, insisting that the Ministry of Health would continue shutting down health facilities implicated in fraud and that legal action would follow against those involved.
“We have closed your hospitals, and if possible, we will charge you in a court of law,” he declared.
The Cabinet Secretary further argued that Kibagendi’s alleged ownership of private hospitals created a conflict of interest. He said he would write to the Speaker of the National Assembly to have the MP removed from the Health Committee.
“We will write to the Speaker that you cannot own a health facility and still be in the Health Committee; you cannot be in this committee because of a conflict of interest,” Duale said.
Also watch: Kitutu Chache South MP Kibagendi demands CS Duale’s resignation over SHA row
Moments after, Kibagendi took to his Facebook page, daring Duale to publicly name the hospitals he claims the legislator owns. The MP said he was tired of being accused without evidence whenever he questioned the operations of the Social Health Authority.
Kibagendi accused the CS of using personal attacks to deflect from questions about the integrity and management of the new health agency. He said every time he raised concerns about how SHA was being run, Duale responded with baseless accusations instead of providing answers.
Kibagendi challenged the CS to present evidence by naming the hospitals, revealing their registration details, and identifying anyone allegedly linked to him.
He said such transparency would expose the truth and allow the Ministry to focus on addressing the flaws and conflicts of interest within the Social Health Authority.
“Each time I ask CS Duale hard questions about SHA, he quickly switches to saying he has closed my hospitals (I don’t know which ones), and that is why I am hard on him. Why can’t Duale openly say which hospitals I own, when they were registered and who are even my proxies? And then go ahead to close them completely. Then now he can answer our questions about the inadequacies and conflict of interest he has in SHA,” Kibagendi stated.
