A section of religious stakeholders in Baringo have recommended for minimum standards to be put in place for registration of religious organizations in order to protect the society from rogue clergy offering misleading teachings.
Speaking during a public participation forum by the Presidential taskforce on review of the legal and regulatory framework governing religious organizations at Kenya School of Government, Baringo Campus, those who gave their views majority church representatives were in agreement on the need to regulate their respective societies as a way of streamlining the spiritual sector.
Baringo Churches representative Peter Keitany in his submissions acknowledged that there are gaps in religious organizations which has allowed few individuals to exploit members.
Keitany who spoke at the forum chaired by Bishop Mark Karuiki stated that the mess came about after the government suspended registration of churches therefore causing other individuals to start illegal churches countrywide.
“There are umbrella bodies but they don’t have a structured relationship with the government making it very hard to implement the right policies,” he said.
His sentiments were supported by Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims (SUPKEM) chairman for Baringo County Abubakar Bilal who noted that the move to regulate religious organizations should have come earlier before the mass killings in Shakahola, Kilifi County.
Bilal said that from the incident and others which are yet to be unearthed, there is need for all religious heads to be vetted to know if they are preaching sound doctrines.
Bishop Joshua Cheptarus of Full Gospel Churches of Kenya noted that the few cases of individuals misusing religion has negatively impacted on the freedom of worship.
He called for the few disobedient individuals to carry their own crosses and be treated as criminals.
“Those deemed culpable should face the full force of the law irrespective of their positions. In fact, it will restore sanity and people will worship without fear,” Bishop Cheptatus stated.
He warned that any church which is not registered should be identified and shut down to avoid innocent worshippers being deceived and exposed to wrong doctrines.
Deliverance Church North Rift Region Overseer Rev Isaac Mutai pointed out that some of the pastors who are opening new churches do not possess the requisite minimum qualifications in terms education, training and professional yet they are commercializing the institution which is wrong.
Mutai recommended that the minimum education qualification for religious leaders should be diploma level but those who actually have the calling of God and with evidence from their overseers can be allowed to pursue at least a certificate so that they can conduct their daily activities without any challenge.
John Barasa who represented advocates called for self-regulation of religious organizations under their umbrella bodies and urged them to be given ex-judicial powers to enable them handle cases touching on the church which could have increased backlog in the open courts.
He however recommended that whenever the organizations are registered, they should stick to their respective constitutions and mandates which should be thoroughly explained to its members for them to understand.
Media and civil organizations suggested that the regulated institutions should be audited on a regular basis to prevent instances where their top leaders acquire huge unaccounted wealth within a short time at the expense of its members.
“Religious organizations must be regulated in a way that they can embark on corporate social responsibility activities in giving back to the society,” Festus Kipchumba, a Freelance Journalist weighed in.
Sauti ya Kanisa Baringo coordinator Evangelist Nicholas Batai who is a retired KDF official said all religious organizations must be guided by their respective umbrella bodies and observe strictly laid down laws and regulations as well as the constitution of Kenya.
Evangelist Robert Tarus is of the opinion that all Chaplains countrywide should sit down with officials from Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) and come up with a standardized education model to support the younger generation in order to deal with extremism.
“Our Children need to have a strong foundation right from when they join school and from a curriculum that is standardized so that we can deal with extremism in the whole country,” he said.
Bishop Kariuki while appreciating the stakeholders for giving their varied views said they will compile the report for Baringo with other counties and come up with a comprehensive regulation which will represent the true face of the country.
Prof Musili Wambua,a member of the taskforce, said the Baringo chapter was able to tackle all the questions asked in the report adding that they will need to look into the most commented issues and also a borrow leaf from other countries on best church regulation practices so that they can compare before coming up with the final report.
Baringo County Commissioner Stephen Kutwa while lauding the taskforce for visiting the county to get views from residents said all he wants is a stronger religious organization which can help resolve societal issues.
Kutwa stated that his office will endeavor to support the exercise which he says compliments peacebuilding in the society especially in a county faced with myriad challenges like cattle rustling and banditry.
