The Chairman of the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB), Archbishop Maurice Muhatia on Thursday, November 14, led bishops in calling out the Kenya Kwanza regime for broken promises and failing to listen to Kenyans’ grievances.
Vividly appeared to be rattled by a stinging statement by the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB), government officials including Cabinet Secretaries (CS), as well as Members of Parliament (MP) and even the police, sought to set the record straight in a Public Relations-esque (PR) exercise of epic proportions.
The Chairman of the KCCB, Archbishop Maurice Muhatia on Thursday, November 14, led bishops in calling out the Kenya Kwanza regime for broken promises and failing to listen to Kenyans’ grievances. The bishops raised fault regarding the political wrangles in the Government which have generated unwarranted tensions and deepened divisions among Kenyans and created an environment of mistrust among the citizens and within the Government itself.
“The elected leaders have been mandated to fulfil roles conferred to them by the Constitution. They are among the highest-paid legislators in the world,” the bishops said in a statement.
“We are troubled by their heightened insensitivity and irresponsibility in carrying out their tasks, allowing themselves to be captured and compromised in corrupt deals. Corruption may not always involve financial benefits, but the unjust use of position and authority, or abuse of office. The massive greed we are witnessing is shocking and heartbreaking,” they held nothing back.
Archibishop Muhatia’s sentiments were instantly followed by harsh rebuttals from some MPs online, who challenged the religious leaders to validate their accusations.
President William Ruto holds talks with the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) at State House in Nairobi on April 12, 2024. /PCS
“Let us all be honest. If you have any information on corrupt legislators, please furnish us with the information to investigate agencies or just name them and shame them,” Kikuyu Member of Parliament Kimani Ichung’wah, a staunch supporter of William Ruto, stated adding, “The drafter of this statement is portraying you either as liars or as politically partisan people seeking to play to a political gallery.”
Majority Leader in the Senate, Aaron Cheruiyot, also joined Ichung’wah in criticising the religious leaders’ statement taking a focus on the bishop’s criticism of the controversial bill presented by Senator Samson Cherargei seeking to extend presidential terms from five to seven years.
“The Bill the Catholic Bishops are referring to was rejected by Senate’s Justice Committee a long time ago. It died before seeing the light of day,” the Senator said as he also defended the government for reducing the debt burden.
Kapseret MP Oscar Sudi took aim at Archbishop Anthony Muheria, who he accused of “preaching the gospel on one hand and fanning tribalism on the other hand”. “The cleric is on record for backing the past regime even when it was clear it had failed Kenyans and must be bold enough to steer away from tribal politics,” Sudi alleged.
Health
Following suit were statements from the Ministries of Education and Health, as well as one from the National Police Service. Health Cabinet Secretary Deborah Barasa dismissed claims by the KCCB that the government owes hospitals owned by Faith-Based Organisations billions of shillings, stating that the claims of dues owed by the government through the defunct NHIF are “misleading, erroneous and false.”
She noted that the defunct NHIF had contracts with 8,886 facilities, encompassing public, private and faith-based organisations, adding that 312 of these facilities are owned by faith-based organisations, representing 3.5 per cent of all contracted providers.
The CS assured that the government is fully committed to settling historical debts. She noted that in the last month, Ksh7.58 billion was mobilised to pay these arrears. “So far, the Social Health Authority has disbursed Ksh5,051,202,052.30 to various providers, including Ksh938,605,212 to health facilities owned by faith-based organisations, the majority of which are Catholic Church-run institutions,” Barasa stated.
In a statement, Barasa added that the Social Health Authority (SHA) will disburse the remaining Ksh2.5 billion by next week and is committed to progressively clearing all unpaid NHIF claims. “Additionally, the Social Health Authority is currently reconciling new claims submitted by providers in October and November 2024 under the Social Health Insurance Fund, and the ministry assures all providers that these claims will be paid on time,” she added.
Police
The National Police Service (NPS) Inspector-General Douglas Kanja also released a statement in response to the catholic bishops’s sentiments on extra-judicial killings and abductions. The bishops had expressed their appallment for the blatant recurring incidents of reported abductions, disappearances, torture and killings of Kenyans as well as decried the increasing murder of women, all of which have caused great consternation, anger and disgust.
“Following the public demonstrations that were witnessed in the country from June 18 to July 2024 against the proposed Finance Bill 2024, our country suffered massive losses ranging from death to destruction of property and livelihoods. NPS recorded 495 injuries to police officers, 347 injuries to civilians, 42 civilian fatalities, and 69 cases of serious damage to Government vehicles. In addition, there were 57 reported cases of missing persons, of which 22 were found alive, 6 were found dead while 29 are still unaccounted for and serious efforts by police are underway to trace them. During the protests, NPS made 1,552 arrests countrywide.
“In response to the current prevalent murder of women witnessed in the country, we have recorded 97 deaths in the past three months. In most of the cases reported, we have effectively investigated, identified the culprits and arraigned them before the court. A specialized Missing Persons Unit has also been established at the DCI to deal with cases of that nature. Gender Desks at police stations nationwide are on high alert to deal swiftly with any cases of gender-based violence,” Kanja stated.
Education
On their part, the Ministry of Education through CS Julius Ogamba defended the implementation of the Competence-Based Curriculum (CBC) as well as the new funding model, stating that as things stand, the transition of the first cohort of the CBC class has been successful and the learners are presently preparing for Grade 9, the final year of Junior School.
Ogamba revealed that the government is providing Ksh15,042 capitation per child and has been distributing core textbooks at the ratio of one book per learner all through from Grades 7 and 8 and book distribution for Grade 9 is currently ongoing. “In terms of infrastructure, the construction of the 16,000 classrooms required for Grade 9 is at an advanced stage. The government has allocated a total of Ksh17.6 billion for the completion of these classrooms by December 2024,” Ogamba said.
Further, the CS underscored the government has employed 56,950 teachers for Junior Schools while 46,000 intern teachers will be employed on permanent and pensionable terms by January 2025 and a further 20,000 teachers are being recruited and will be in place by January 2025. “The government has, therefore, taken proactive measures and invested heavily to ensure that the noble objectives of CBC are achieved through seamless implementation. This, therefore, can hardly be described as crumbling,” Ogamba argued.
Julius Migos Ogamba, Cabinet Secretary for the Ministry of Education, during the Kenya Music Festival State Concert at the Eldoret State Lodge on August 16, 2024. /PCS
On the higher education loan scheme, the CS asserted that the government has disbursed more than Ksh41 billion to universities in loans and scholarships to the two cohorts of students since 2023 under the student-centred funding model. He added that the new funding model has eased the financial burden on universities, which had been indebted to the tune of Ksh70 billion, with many technically insolvent.
“To ensure the model is improved further, President William 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 pleaded.