Photo Credit:Associated Press
The Catholic Archbishop of Kenya’s Archdiocese of Nairobi, Philip Anyolo Subira, has snubbed financial donations by President William Samoei Ruto, citing the commitment of the Church to keep off all systems that will compromise its integrity and autonomy. The pronouncement came in an announcement on the 18th of November.
President Ruto had on November 17 donated more than 5 million Kenyan shillings ($38,500) to Soweto Catholic Church to construct a new rectory. He also announced 600,000 Kenyan shillings ($4,600) to the parish choir and the Pontifical Missionary Childhood, which also include charity to children in the parish. He said he will donate a bus to the parish. However, Archbishop Anyolo says he has rejected the donations to maintain the Church’s ideals.
The political donations" to the Soweto Catholic Church, according to Archbishop Anyolo in his statement, flout Kenya’s Public Fundraising Appeals Bill 2024 that makes it obligatory for fundraising appeals to have a permit. “These funds will be refunded to the respective donors,” Anyolo said, further stating, “The promised additional 3 million [$23,256] for the construction of the [pastor’s] house, as well as the donation of a parish bus by the president, are hereby declined.”
In this, the Archbishop noted that KCCB had always taken an uncompromising posture on politicians’ donation of money to churches, citing the morality and principle behind such acts that would jeopardize the Church being used as a political campaign tool. “The Catholic Church strongly discourages the use of church events like fundraisers and gatherings as avenues for political self-promotion,” Anyolo said. Politicians should
not turn the pulpit into a platform for political rhetoric, a thing that desecrates the sanctity of worship.
Archbishop Anyolo reiterated that the Church was committed to its integrity to decline contributions likely to “inadvertently” compromise its independence or perpetuate “unjust enrichment.” He also referred to a letter the KCCB members issued on November 14, in which they accused the government of disregard for “pertinent unresolved issues.” The letter challenged political leaders to provide moral leadership on key issues facing
Kenyans, including political wrangles, corruption, politics of self-interest, violations of human rights, and freedom of speech, as well as “the culture of lies.”
The Archbishop also recalled the appeal made by the KCCB to Kenyan politicians to address issues of the National Health Insurance Fund and what they described as “unfulfilled promises, misplaced priorities, selfish agendas to extend terms of elected leaders, and over-taxation of Kenyans.”
He concluded by saying that the Church should remain neutral and free from politicians so as to effectively serve as a place for spiritual growth and community guidance. Though politicians are free to go to church for their spiritual nourishment, they have to go like any other ordinary Christian, “without leveraging their positions for political gain.”
