“Kenya is a secular state but is behaving like countries such as Saudi Arabia and Iran, which are religious states. Our movement rejects this attempt and calls on the government to focus on arresting individual criminals hiding behind churches rather than targeting the church as a whole”- the group argued in their statement
By The Weekly Vision Team
A lobby group representing communities from the Mt. Kenya region has called for the rejection of proposed legislation aimed at regulating ‘rogue’ preachers, arguing that it is an attempt to control religious organizations. The group, Aaca Movement, criticised the government’s move as unconstitutional, harsh, and punitive, claiming there was no public participation as required by law.
“The Kenyan government is in the advanced stages of enacting punitive laws against the church under the guise of controlling rogue churches. If these so-called rogue churches are involved in criminal activities, the police should target them directly rather than punishing the entire religious sector,” the group stated.
The group added that the criminals operating under the cover of religious organisations are well known to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the National Intelligence Service (NIS), provincial administrators, and Nyumba Kumi elders. The statement, released by Chairman Kimani Ngunjiri and Secretary General Stephen Ndicho, emphasised that any individuals breaking the law should face legal consequences, but the entire religious sector should not be subjected to punitive measures such as hefty fines and imprisonment.
“Aaca Movement stands with other organisations in Kenya opposing the legislation of harsh anti-church laws. What the government is doing is persecuting the church. We say no!” they declared. The group further noted that the constitution guarantees freedom of worship, whether for an individual or a group, without making registration mandatory. They warned that the proposed legislation if passed, poses a serious threat to this freedom.
“The Kenyan Church should be concerned about the government’s attempts to regulate it.” This leaves us no choice but to seek legal redress. Lawyers have already been instructed to file a petition against this punitive legislation,” the lobby said.
In their statement, the group also argued, “Kenya is a secular state but is behaving like countries such as Saudi Arabia and Iran, which are religious states. Our movement rejects this attempt and calls on the government to focus on arresting individual criminals hiding behind churches rather than targeting the church as a whole.”
The lobby urged all church organisations to sign petitions being circulated through umbrella bodies, instructing lawyers to take legal action against the government’s proposed legislation.
