{"id":111185,"date":"2025-03-01T13:03:24","date_gmt":"2025-03-01T13:03:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/index.php\/2025\/03\/01\/wetangula-urges-unity-as-ichungwah-leads-offensive-on-politicking-clerics\/"},"modified":"2025-03-01T13:03:24","modified_gmt":"2025-03-01T13:03:24","slug":"wetangula-urges-unity-as-ichungwah-leads-offensive-on-politicking-clerics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wetangula-urges-unity-as-ichungwah-leads-offensive-on-politicking-clerics\/","title":{"rendered":"Wetangula urges unity as Ichung\u2019wah leads offensive on politicking clerics"},"content":{"rendered":"

NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 1 \u2013 National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula has called for unity among leaders, urging them to focus on solutions rather than engaging in blame games when addressing the country\u2019s challenges.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Speaking at the burial of Baringo Senator William Cheptumo at his Bartabwa home in Baringo on Saturday, Wetangula emphasized the importance of collective problem-solving, stating that leaders should seek solutions instead of pointing fingers.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur country will not have other people from outside to help us build our unity and our development, it is ourselves. Therefore, I implore the honorable members of Parliament, because you are the ones with the platform to speak at all times, let\u2019s speak in a language that brings Kenyans together,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He also encouraged religious leaders to uphold the sanctity of the church as a place of guidance and refrain from political involvement.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen there is a problem, the answer is to look for a solution, not to blame others, because after the blame, the problem will not go. Challenges will always [be] there,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

His remarks came as National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung\u2019wah once again criticized religious leaders for what he termed as unnecessary involvement in political affairs.<\/p>\n

\u2018Political activism\u2019<\/h2>\n

Ichung\u2019wah expressed concern that some members of the clergy have abandoned their spiritual roles and instead taken on \u201cpolitical activism\u201d.<\/p>\n

He specifically took issue with recent demands by faith-based health institutions for the government to settle debts owed to them by the now-defunct National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF).<\/p>\n

\u201cWe now hope and pray that the church will now focus on justice to ensure brethren go to heaven, which is their purpose, and leave politics to politicians,\u201d the National Assembly Majority Leader said.<\/p>\n

He urged religious leaders to realign their focus on their core mission of spiritual nourishment and guidance rather than engaging in political debates. Ichung\u2019wah insisted that the church should remain a neutral institution and avoid being drawn into government affairs.<\/p>\n

Selective criticism <\/h2>\n

The Kikuyu MP questioned why the same clergy members had remained silent when public funds were misappropriated under NHIF but were now vocal following the transition to the Social Health Authority (SHA), which has inherited the debts.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen money was being stolen from NHIF, we never heard them protesting about our rights or about that debt. It is now when the new SHA has inherited that debt that we are starting to hear these noises,\u201d Ichung\u2019wah remarked.<\/p>\n

In recent months, several church leaders have openly criticized President William Ruto\u2019s administration, expressing concerns over governance, economic policies, and social issues.<\/p>\n

Ichung\u2019wah appeared to be aiming his jab at Archbishop Anthony Muheria of the Nyeri Catholic Archdiocese delivered a pointed critique of President Ruto\u2019s administration a week ago, urging a shift from rhetoric to tangible action.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere has to be less rhetoric. We have to stop advertising what you will do. Act! The government is not an advertising agency. It is an agency that implements actions; that\u2019s what we want to see,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The Archbishop expressed concerns over the current state of governance, highlighting the need for improvements in education, healthcare, and economic stability. He called for a government that adheres to established rules and systems, rather than one overly focused on public relations efforts.<\/p>\n

Muheria also appealed for constructive dialogue and unity among leaders, advocating for a collaborative approach to national development instead of engaging in political disputes.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 1 \u2013 National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula has called for unity among leaders, urging them to focus on solutions rather than engaging in blame games when addressing the country\u2019s challenges. Speaking at the burial of Baringo Senator William Cheptumo at his Bartabwa home in Baringo on Saturday, Wetangula emphasized the importance of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-111185","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","entry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/111185","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=111185"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/111185\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=111185"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=111185"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=111185"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}