President William Ruto has appointed renowned humanitarian leader Abbas Gullet as the new Non-Executive Chairperson of the Board of Directors of Kenyatta National Hospital. The appointment takes effect from July 25, 2025, and will run for a period of three years.

Through a gazette notice, the President announced that Gullet’s appointment replaces that of Dr Samier Muravvej, whose tenure has been revoked.

“In exercise of the powers conferred by section 6 (1)(a) of the State Corporations Act and Regulation 2 (2)(a) of the Kenyatta National Hospital Board Order, as read together with section 51 (1) of the Interpretation and General Provisions Act, I, William Samoei Ruto, President of the Republic of Kenya and Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Forces, appoint—ABBAS GULLET (DR.) to be the Non-Executive Chairperson of the Board of Directors of Kenyatta National Hospital, for a period of three (3) years, with effect from the 25th July, 2025. The appointment of Samier Muravvej (Dr.) is revoked,” the notice read.

Gullet’s humanitarian journey began in 1973, when he joined the Kenya Red Cross as a Form One student at Mombasa Technical High School through the President’s Award Scheme.

He later worked for the Kenya External Telecommunications Company and the Kenya Post and Telecommunications between 1978 and 1984, before formally joining the Kenya Red Cross as a medical officer in 1985.

After years of humanitarian postings in Kenya and abroad, he was seconded by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies to Kenya in 2001.

From that point, he spearheaded the transformation of the Kenya Red Cross Society, eventually becoming Secretary-General, and led initiatives that earned the organisation recognition as a Superbrand three years in a row.

He is the founder of E-Plus Ambulance Services, which currently runs a fleet of 128 ambulances, and also chairs the Boma Hotels group, a Red Cross-owned enterprise operating in Nairobi, Eldoret, and Nyeri.

Gullet also serves as Vice President for Africa at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent.

In 2020, at the age of 60, he stepped down as Secretary-General of the Kenya Red Cross, saying he needed to prioritise his family after years of demanding work that often started before dawn and ended late in the evening.

His legacy has been recognised through numerous awards, including the UN Person of the Year in Kenya, the Order of the Golden Warrior, the Utetezi Award, and the Moran of the Burning Spear.

He also received a Doctorate of Humane Letters from Egerton University and was named one of the Top 100 Most Influential Africans by Forbes Africa.

With this new role at the country’s top referral and teaching hospital, Abbas Gullet is expected to bring strategic direction and a deep understanding of emergency health systems to public healthcare leadership.