The situation of an injured worker being unable to leave hospital long after doctors have cleared him has raised serious questions about how some companies handle staff welfare.
In this case, the worker was not injured at home or during personal time, but while carrying out official duties for his employer. What followed after the accident has left many of his colleagues disturbed and frustrated.
The matter was brought to public attention by Cyprian Is Nyakundi, who received the account from colleagues of the injured worker.
The message sent to him was quoted in full and read: “Hi Nyakundi. Please highlight this on your Facebook wall anonymously. A recovery officer at Watu Credit, Martin, was recently involved in a serious accident while on duty.
He underwent surgery, and the total hospital bill came to almost KSh 2 million. The medical insurance covered part of it, but the outstanding balance is still KSh 750,000. He was discharged on Monday, but he has been unable to leave the hospital because the bill has not been cleared.
Despite Watu Credit publicly declaring billions in profit, the company has refused to assist him, even though the accident occurred in the course of his work. Shockingly, instead of supporting one of their own staff during a crisis, the company issued KSh 3,000 vouchers to employees funds that could have helped clear Martin’s hospital bill. Please bring this to the public’s attention. Kindly hide my identity for safety reasons.”
According to colleagues, the recovery officer was involved in a serious road accident while on duty and suffered injuries that required surgery.
His medical insurance paid part of the hospital costs, but a large balance remained. Even after doctors confirmed that he was fit to be discharged earlier this month, the unpaid bill meant he could not leave the hospital.
Days later, he is still confined there, waiting for the balance to be settled.
Staff members say repeated appeals were made to Watu Credit to step in and assist, especially because the accident happened in the line of duty. They claim these appeals were met with silence.
This response has caused anger among workers who feel abandoned and exposed, especially those whose roles involve daily risk on the roads.What has deepened the frustration is that during the same period, the company issued KSh 3,000 vouchers to staff.
To many employees, this move felt disconnected from the reality facing their injured colleague.
They argue that even a small redirection of resources could have helped clear the hospital bill and allowed their co-worker to return home and begin recovery in a safer environment.
Watu Credit operates across Kenya and other African markets, financing motorcycles, vehicles, and smartphones through lease-to-own arrangements.
The company is known to handle assets worth billions of shillings. This has led to uncomfortable questions among staff and observers about how a firm of such scale can fail to support an employee injured while generating revenue for the business.
This publication has reviewed screenshots and internal communications that support the sequence of events described. However, the material has not been published in order to protect the identity of the source and reduce the risk of retaliation.
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