Clergy still stuck in poll duel as foxy MPs move on

By Oscar Obonyo

"When they tell you to kneel down, you do so without questioning why; when they order you to run around the church, you obey; when they rebuke you for failing to pay tithe, you make amends without complaining; when they ask you to pay for their personal comforts, you go to extremes to obey".

Ford-Kenya Chairman Musikari Kombo’s comment shows the extent to which ordinary Kenyans are obey their spiritual leaders. But this time around, observes the legislator, their flock abandoned them.

"They should have realised long ago they are no longer dealing with meek followers, but an educated and sophisticated flock able to read and interpret the Bible. They ought to have given to Caesar what is Caesar’s and ministered to us to heal from the wounds brought about by divergent views on constitution making," says Kombo.

Even more interesting is that the political class — those who joined hands in pushing for the rejection of the Proposed Constitution — has equally abandoned the clergy.

Immediately after the referendum poll results, the clergy and politicians in the ‘No’ camp went their separate ways after the Church leaders declined to concede defeat. The irony of the latest development is that while politicians have gracefully conceded defeat and opted to move on, it is the men and the women of the cloth who are breathing ‘vengeance’.

In fact, Evangelical Alliance of Kenya General Secretary Wellington Mutiso initially threatened to go to court. Indications that cracks had emerged in the ‘No’ camp appeared the day after the referendum poll, when Higher Education Minister William Ruto led politicians in the ‘Red’ camp at a press conference at Bomas of Kenya, where they conceded defeat.

Even though they had all through shared a podium during the campaigns, the clergy were conspicuously absent at the press conference. Instead, they invited the media for a parallel one on August 6, which they cancelled at the eleventh hour.

The Standard on Sunday has since established the clergy were unable to agree on a face-saving exit strategy. For while the mainstream Churches — Catholics and Anglicans — felt they had made their point and wanted to move on, the evangelicals wanted "to push the battle to next level".

And the clergy have an even bigger point of departure with the ‘No’ politicians. While they perceive the referendum poll as a lose-lose case, for the politicians it is a "lose the battle, but win the war" scenario.

Political wing

"As democrats we have accepted the verdict of Kenyans. We may have lost at the ballot, but we shall take the battle to the floor of the House, where we shall ensure that contentious issues are addressed," Mutito MP Kiema Kilonzo told The Standard on Sunday, moments after the political wing of the ‘Reds’ conceded defeat.

The MP, who co-ordinated the ‘No’ campaigns in Eastern Province, observes their team has agreed to help the country move forward. As a first measure, remarks Kiema, the ‘No’ camp plans to meet the ‘Yes’ team to discuss the way forward.

Paradoxically, the clergy do not sound as reconciliatory as their political colleagues. During a two-day consultative meeting of National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK) executive council at Limuru Conference Centre, they demanded that President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga immediately initiate changes on the new Constitution.

"It will be dangerous to sideline 2.7 million Kenyans who voted against the Proposed Constitution," warned NCCK General Secretary, Reverend Peter Karanja. Whether the clergy are acting out of ignorance or sheer rigidity remains unclear. What is clear, though, is that it may not be possible to address the concerns of the clergy until after the 2012 General Election.

This is because the new Constitution provides for citizen’s amendment through county assemblies, Senate and finally a referendum. Alternatively, Parliament can initiate amendments through over two-thirds majority in the National Assembly and Senate — both at the second and third reading. These will only be in place in the 11th Parliament. Needless to say, Committee of Experts Chairman Nzamba Kitonga and Justice Minister, Mutula Kilonzo, dismiss the demands by NCCK as irrelevant and impractical. The CoE boss suggests a window period of 10 years before proposals for any amendments. And much as they pulled together in the campaigns, the political wing has in the meantime run away with all the credit, with Ruto now being viewed as the new powerhouse worth 2.7 million votes.