Patrick Mutahi, the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church of East Africa (PCEA), faces jail time due to his disobedience of court directives that forbade the installation of a church official.
The Milimani Court has scheduled Mutahi’s appearance for May 22. The judge has charged him with disobeying his instructions to refrain from installing David Ndumo as the church treasurer until the hearing of a lawsuit alleging default on a debt of Ksh 7.4 million.
Lady Justice Asenath Ongeri issued court orders on April 9, which Mutahi disobeyed. These orders prevented the appointment of Ndumo as treasurer until the resolution of the lawsuit.
The sources claim that because President William Ruto and his deputy, Rigathi Gachagua, were present, the church authorities carried out the installation.
In February, the PCEA moderator was re-elected to the role of head of the church, a highly recognized position that carries out its tasks in cooperation with the general assembly and its committees.
On April 9 at PCEA St. Andrews Church, the church held its general assembly and placed Mutahi in his position. President William Ruto was there to witness this momentous occurrence.
Daniel Kibirii’s tenure as honorary treasurer was coming to an end, leading to the permanent appointment of Ndumo. Recently, however, a drama occurred at St. Andrews Church in Nairobi.
Timothy Njoya stormed out of the 24th general assembly when the moderator disobeyed court orders, preventing him from installing Ndumo.
Following Mutahi’s decision to install Ndumo as church treasurer in defiance of a court order that had been granted on April 8, 2024, Njoya stormed out of the gathering in anger.
Justice Ongeri issued orders prohibiting Mutahi and Robert Waihenya, who are both the moderator and general secretary of the PCEA church, from staking Ndumo as the treasurer.
Benjamin Njoroge Mburu, a member of the PCEA in Kikuyu Town, petitioned the Milimani High Court to challenge Ndumo’s nomination as the church official, leading to the issuance of the interim orders. Ndumo is currently facing a lawsuit in court for failing to pay Sheria Sacco a debt of Sh7.4 million.
Mburu informed the court in Nairobi in Cooperative Tribunal Case Number 727 of 2019 that Ndumo is a judgment-debtor and must repay the 15 claims. Among the plaintiffs are Juma Olago, Charles Maina, Jane Njoroge, and Benjamin Ombogo.
A court case accusing Ndumo of failing to repay a loan of Sh 7.4 million to Sheria Sacco has been ongoing since 2019. Therefore, his fifteen guarantors are responsible for settling the debt.
The general public has taken notice of the issue and is criticizing the church’s authorities for defying the court’s orders.
The PCEA has not yet provided a statement on the situation.