One pastor from Nyeri by the name Bishop Paul Githinji has waded into the
contentious debate on whether churches should be allowed to accept monetary proceeds from politicians or not.
Githinji in an interview with a local tv station said he was not subscribing to the church Harambee way of thinking as he expressed concern over the rampant manner in which many churches in the country easily accepted gifts, particularly from politicians Brothels, prostitutes and thieves.
The bishop noted that upon receiving these donations, the priests and pastors are tasked with praying for and sanctifying the money before using it. While he did not necessarily rule out churches receiving money gifts from outsiders, Bishop Githinji came up with an unorthodox suggestion to have servants of God ‘purify’ the money before using.
“The servants of God should receive it and before you use it, should be sanctified. I also want to request the people coming up with this kind of agenda to come out. If there are people who are known to be corrupt, I would like to see them standing on the dock,” he went on.
As far as church donations are concerned, Deputy President William Ruto is perhaps the most renown ‘giver’. The DP’s donations across various churches in the country are to the tune of millions, with critics arguing he has been using proceeds from graft to attract more admirers ahead of the 2022 presidential poll.
Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga came up with the suggestions that the church should not accept ‘dirty money’ from politicians something that has attracted various reactions both from the church and politicians.
While others led by Anglican Archbishop Ole Sabit supports the move, others especially bishops from the central Kenya have remain defiant saying that they will continue to receive the donations from politicians.