President Uhuru Kenyatta at Archbishop Njenga's funeral Catholic leaders applauded a presidential order requiring education ministry officials to return to churches all of the schools that religious denominations surrendered to the government five decades ago.
President Uhuru Kenyatta said he had given government officials one week for the restoration of the schools’ ownership to churches, to return the land they occupy and for the re-establishment of full church sponsorship of the institutions.
Kenyatta announced the order at the funeral of retired Archbishop John Njenga of Mombasa, who died on November 4 in Nairobi while undergoing medical care.
The late archbishop was interred at the Holy Family Minor Basilica in Nairobi, becoming the first bishop to be laid to rest inside the church.
“There are a lot schools sponsored and built by the church,” Kenyatta said, adding, “I want you (Ministry of Education) to ensure that you restore that sponsorship.”
Calls
Kenyatta’s order comes amid persistent calls for more Church involvement in schools, which have experienced strikes and violence including the torching of some buildings.
“We welcome the directive. We see it as a good move. The Church will take its special role in the school as it used to be,” Bishop Philip Anyolo of Kisumu, president of the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops said.
“The state should respect what the Church has done in the past and work together as partners, not as competitors,” Bishop Anyolo added.
Kenyatta said that while the Church and state must be separate, the two can be interdependent and work together as they did in earlier days.
“We need to get to back to the level where Church-sponsored schools must be allowed to mentor our children,” he added.