“Church will not remain silent”: Catholic Bishops in Kenya Express Commitment to Condemn Poor Governance

Nairobi, 24 July, 2025 / 4:28 PM

The Church will not be cowed into silence amid poor leadership, the chairman of the Catholic Justice and Peace Department of the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops has said, expressing the commitment of Bishops in the country to continue raising the voice of Kenyans amid challenges such as poverty, inequality, youth unemployment, and a lack of transparency in government.

In a video reflection published on Facebook on Saturday, July 19, Bishop Simon Peter Kamomoe said that Kenya is currently facing governance challenges that have plunged the people into deep suffering.

“Even now, when we see bad things happening, the Church will not remain silent. It will continue to speak out. That is why we Bishops continue to speak out and to urge leaders to look into the needs of Kenyans,” Bishop Kamomoe said.

The KCCB official underscored the importance of the voice of the church in societal issues, saying, “The Catholic Bishops always speak out, pointing out to leaders the social injustices taking place under any given regime.”

 “The Church began speaking out during the time of Jesus Christ Himself. And even after this current regime, the Church will continue to speak out, because that is our responsibility. To be the conscience of the people, the voice of the people,” he said.

Bishop Kamomoe called upon a section of church leaders and politicians who are condemning the Catholic Church for addressing the issues affecting the Kenyan people, noting that the Church has always sought to be the conscience of the society.

“In every regime, the Church speaks,” he said, and added, “Let Kenyans not be misled into thinking that the Church is speaking out for the first time.” 

The Auxiliary Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Wote faulted poor leadership, saying, “We have a very good country, but our leaders mess up our country.”

“We have politicians who treat politics as their personal business to enrich themselves,” he said.

Bishop Kamomoe urged perseverance amid hardships, telling the people of God in Kenya, “Don’t lose hope, because we are children of God, and God continues to be with us. Hope in God does not disappoint.”

He also cautioned the youth in the country against destructive behaviour, urging them to find proper ways to express their dissatisfaction with governance without “causing more harm to the nation.”

“Our young people should remain disciplined and responsible when demonstrating. We do not want our youth to be involved in wrongdoing,” Bishop Kamomoe said.