Days after Catholic bishops attacked President William Ruto‘s administration over various policies introduced by the ruling regime, religious leaders from the Nyanza region have issued a press statement on the state of the nation.
The leaders drawn from different churches in a statement on November 18, 2024, issued at St Stephen’s Cathedral in Kisumu highlighted different areas that have been hard hit by government policies.
In addition, the religious leaders issued their irreducible demands to the Office of the President which they want addressed.
“The church leaders from the Nyanza region join the rest of the religious leaders including the Catholic Bishops who have stood in the gaps for the ordinary Kenyans. The rights of individuals have been abused in various ways by discriminatory policies advanced by the government and that which have left many Kenyans in a state of despair, seclusion, poverty and hopelessness,” the statement reads.
Among the demands include the publication of the people who have been convicted or charged with mega corruption and the report on foreign travels that President Ruto promised would be cut.
Nyanza religious leaders issue demands
They have also demanded from the President publications of all the state appointments he has made since he took over the office before and after the creation of the “broad-based government” and the current state of employment and financial obligations of the staff at State House including the paid prayer warriors.
“We also demand the status of the office of the first and second ladies that the president publicly stated would be abolished because they are not constitutional.
We also demand that the Government revokes the unpopular funding model that segregates our university students into economic bands and reverts back to the old University funding model that was not discriminatory,” the leaders said.
Also Read: Ruto Responds to Catholic Bishops
The leaders further demand that the government immediately implement the University Lecturers’ CBA to allow normalcy at our universities.
Ruto has also been demanded to issue an official statement on the state of the appointment of new IEBC commissioners.
The demands were issued by the leaders who highlighted different sectors and topics which they want addressed.
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They touched on Health Sector, Education, County Funding, Security, Corruption and the Judiciary.
Demands on Health sector
While addressing the Social Health Authority (SHA) which replaced the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF), the religious leaders asserted that the new authority will never solve the problems that NHIF could not if systematic issues, mismanagement and corruption are not addressed.
Also Read: Church Slaps Ruto with 5 Demands
In response to this, the leaders demanded a comprehensive medical policy that would include employment and remuneration of all our medical practitioners.
“Cancer is taking toll of many Kenyans young and old and the government must think of a health policy and implementation matrix that would facilitate all County referral hospitals with Cancer treatment units at no cost at all. Let all public health facilities offer free medication services to all Kenyans,” the statement adds.
This comes after Catholic Bishops condemned Ruto’s administration over unexplained killings, abductions, widespread corruption, and a growing culture of deception.
In a pointed statement, the bishops, through the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB), criticized the government for fostering an environment where citizens have become accustomed to the lies propagated by politicians.
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