A section of clerics now wants the government to take decisive action against criminals behind the alarming abduction and murder cases being witnessed in the country.
The clergymen called on the government to undertake an immediate and coordinated response to address violence being meted out on Kenyans, especially women citing an increase in the brutal murders.
Led by the Federation of Evangelical and Indigenous Christian Churches of Kenya (FEICCK) secretary general Bishop David Thagana, the clerics urged the government to protect the citizenry from the killers,
Last month, Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja announced that a total of 339 murder cases have been recorded in the country in three months.
In 2024 alone, FIDA-Kenya has documented at least 30 cases of women killed by intimate partners in acts of domestic violence and femicide.
The men of the cloth described the statistics as frightening and called for immediate prevention actions and tracking down the assailants to curb the worrying murders.
"We are worried that if the trend of killings, and especially of young women in our country, is left unchecked, there will be pandemonium in the country. All relevant authorities must act swiftly to restore sanity for the sake of our country's peace," Bishop Thagana said.
Former Nyeri PCEA moderator Charles K. Ndanyu called out abductors and propagators of femicide saying that women killers have no place in society.
"We must rebuke all criminals perpetrating ills in the society. We should also avail information regarding the criminals to the authorities for their arrest and prosecution," Ndanyu said.
Among the documented recent women murder cases include the murders of Starlet Wahu and Rita Waeni, the discovery of six women’s bodies in Kware, Embakasi—linked to a primary suspect, Collins Jumaisi, who remains at large—and the recent death of Yvonne Jirangwa, a 23-year-old trainee nun, whose body was found in a sewer pit in Rongo.
Patrick Kimathi, the current PCEA moderator for Nyeri expressed grief and outrage at what they described as failures in protecting women’s constitutional rights, including the right to life, safety, and security.
Kimathi called on the government to tame the rise in abduction and murder cases in different parts of the country and endeavour to protect the lives of all Kenyans.
They made the statements during the burial of Mary Wanjiru who is bishop Thagana's sister, a day after Chief Justice Martha Koome broke her silence regarding the alarming cases of femicide in the country and called upon Kenyans to be alive to the surge in femicide cases.
The clerics at the same time called on Kenyans to uphold peace and embrace each other following the swearing-in of third deputy President Kithure Kindiki after the impeachment of Rigathi Gachagua.
"Let us all maintain and uphold peace and tranquillity for the stability of our families, communities, regions and the country at large," Bishop Thagana said
. They called on leaders to be at the forefront of preaching peace to facilitate socioeconomic development in the country.
