In a turn of events, the Catholic Archdiocese of Nairobi publicly declined donations made by President William Ruto and Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja at a church service on Sunday, prompting mixed reactions across Kenya.
The Catholic Church’s decision sparked heated responses on social media, with Kenyans both supporting and condemning the move.
Under the hashtag #IStandWithTheCatholicBishops, supporters praised the church’s firm stance.
Supporters of the church’s decision included prominent individuals and ordinary citizens who commended the Catholic bishops for upholding the church's integrity.
“I stand with the Catholic Church. I stand with the Catholic bishops,” Kiambu Senator Karungo Wa Thang'wa tweeted.
Activist Miguna Miguna applauded Archbishop Anyolo’s courage, likening him to historic liberation theologians.
“Archbishop Phillip Anyolo has joined the pantheon of legendary and heroic liberation theologians like the late archbishops Henry Okulu and Alexander Muge. Viva!” Miguna said.
A user named Samora M thanked the Church for what he termed as standing on the tower of true worship.
“There’s honor in the Catholic Church. This is a great move. God bless his grace The Most Rev Philip A. Anyolo and all the congregants,” another user by the name Mutharimi said.
On the other hand, some Kenyans felt the bishops’ actions were hypocritical and unfair.
“What if Ruto and Sakaja weren’t politicians and were just any other philanthropists? Would their donation still be declined?” Moses Mahianyu questioned.
Charles Kiamba Mbithi accused the bishops of hypocrisy, noting that government support for Catholic projects had not been rejected in the past.
“Sadaka ni kwa Mungu sio kwa askofu! We don't expect our Bishops to be political; politics is a dirty game!” he said.
"This is pure hypocrisy, the Catholic church is bigger than Kenyan bishops, the donations are for the church of God not for the Bishops, the Bishops are playing dirty politics!"
Margaret Mutisya termed the stand by the Catholic bishops as PR tactics.
“If the Church was genuine from the word go, they would have advised the presidential team prior… This is simply pure PR, too low for such an institution, just to embarrass the president,” she said.
Blogger and commentator Dennis Itumbi voiced similar criticism.
“So, are there political donations and religious donations? Are you Bishops judging people to be unrighteous?” he questioned.
Itumbi’s comment underlined a perception that the bishops’ stance was unnecessarily judgmental.
President Ruto had pledged Sh2 million for the construction of a priest's house, Sh600,000 for the church choir, and promised a bus for the church by January.
Governor Sakaja also donated Sh200,000. However, Archbishop Anyolo of Nairobi’s Catholic Church announced that the donations would be returned.
“These funds will be returned to the respective donors and the promised additional Sh3 million for construction and the bus are hereby declined,” he said in a statement on Monday.
Archbishop Anyolo cited a policy by the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) banning political donations, noting that the church must remain a neutral entity free from political influence.
KCCB Chair Archbishop Maurice Muhatia emphasised that Kenya’s current tax policies are unreasonable and a hidden revival of the unpopular Finance Bill 2024, calling the tax regime prohibitive and burdensome.
