In a span of hours, the government came out guns blazing against concerns raised by the Catholic bishops that accused the State of being out of touch with reality and the plight of Kenyans.
In a press briefing on Thursday, the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) accused the government of engaging in a “culture of lies” and “unkept promises” while at the same time overtaxing Kenyans who are grappling with the high cost of living.
The bishops also called out the State for abducting its citizens and subsequently violating the Human Rights and freedom of speech enshrined in the Constitution. They also touched on struggling policies across several sectors such as the Health, education and security.
“We recall other pertinent unresolved issues we have raised recently with the government, over taxation of Kenyans, the hiking of the Missionary work permits, youth unemployment, regulations of the Education system especially the CBC, and University loan scheme, the failure to constitute the IEBC etc,” the statement read in part.
“We believe that genuine consultation of all concerned stakeholders in all these matters, is necessary, beyond the casual public participation. This culture of lies, unkept promises and misplaced priorities is unacceptable and needs to be dealt with.”
In an attempt to save face, government officials sent out a number of statements to quell the proverbial storm raised by the bishops; a clear indication of how the bishops rattled the State.
President William Ruto’s administration pegged on the church to ascend to power during the 2022 campaign season but now the two institutions are on the opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of policies and governance.
The question remains, why is the government threatened by the Catholic’s voice in the society?
Health
The bishops raised concerns of billions that the defunct National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) owes faith-based organisations hospitals, noting that it is an issue they have constantly raised with the president to no avail.
That statement necessitated a response from Health CS Deborah Barasa who noted that the government is committed to settle its debts.
She explained that the State paid Ksh.7.58 billion to settle the outstanding debt, out of the Ksh.19 billion that has accrued in the past decade.
“So far, the Social Health Authority has disbursed Ksh.5 billion to various providers including Ksh.938 million to health facilities owned by faith-based organisations, majority of which are Catholic Church-run institutions,” the bishops stated.
Education
KCCB also listed concerns on the crisis in the education sector which involves a ‘crumbling’ Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) and university loan scheme.
On his part, Education CS Migos Ogamba took issue with the clergy, citing that the two programs have made significant strides in the education sector.
He listed various initiatives such as Ksh.17.6 billion for completion of Grade 9 classrooms, employment of over 56,000 Junior Secondary School teachers and distribution of textbooks for Grades 7, 8 and 9.
He noted that the State has taken proactive measures and invested billions to ensure the success of CBC through a seamless transition.
In terms of the university funding model, CS Ogamba noted that the government has disbursed Ksh.41 billion to universities in terms of loans and scholarships.
“To ensure the model is improved further, His Excellency the President Dr. William Samoei Ruto has appointed a National Working Committee to collate views from the public to refine the model. We request our Catholic clergy not to condemn a whole education system that has over 11 million learners,” the CS noted.
Security
Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja also criticised the clergy for overlooking the measures taken by the service to address the cases of abductions, torture and killings that have occurred recently.
The IG noted that a specialised Missing Persons Unit and Gender desks were formed to address the issues. Further, he noted that the police have made 1,552 arrests countrywide whose cases are being pursued.
Further, cases where police officers have been implicated are being probed by the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) in collaboration with the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).
“All cases of abductions are being investigated by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations and we are making good progress in that direction,” IG Kanja noted.
Senate Majority leader Aaron Cheruiyot and his National Assembly counterpart Kimani Ichung’wah also called for the bishops to provide graft evidence involving any political leader to investigating agencies instead of sparking panic among the public.
“Let us all be honest. If you have any information on corrupt legislators, please furnish info to investigate agencies or just name them and shame them,” Ichung’wah said.
“I am struggling to recall the last time the Catholic Bishops issued such a scathing personal attack on the 2 Former President’s who were incidentally Catholics,” Cheruiyot posed.
On Friday, the President also downplayed the concerns raised by Bishop against his administration.
In his address during the Tangaza University graduation ceremony, President Ruto asked leaders including the clergy to be “factual” when speaking on matters of national interest.
He said: “I want to ask all of us, leaders, clergy, Kenyans to work together towards a nation we can all be proud of and even as we engage in public discourse on matters that are important to the people of Kenya, we must be careful to be factual lest we become victims of the things we accuse others of doing.”
