Man injured in ‘kesha’ row
A three-month tension between a church and Mariakani, South B residents turned ugly on Friday night during an overnight prayer, popularly known as kesha.
The Gospel Tabernacle Worship Centre which has been in the estate for more than a decade had allegedly broken an agreement with the residents not to play loud music at night.
“We collected 300 signatures and reported the issue to the National Environment and Management Authority (Nema). All was well until the beginning of the year when the menace started again,” said Mr Kiereini Kirika the regional expansion manager at MicroEnsure and a resident.
Mr Kirika claimed he was shoved off the pulpit, stones hurled at him and that he sustained cuts to his hands and legs when he approached a pastor at about 10.30pm to complain about the loud music.
“No one was willing to talk to me at the entrance so I went to the pulpit to talk to pastor John Muyu. Unfortunately, the drummer approached asking me to leave before calling three other youths to flush me out,” said Mr Kirika who has since reported the matter to Industrial Area Police Station.
According to Mr Kirika, the loud music had become unbearable for his pregnant wife and that is why he took the decision to go to the church and ask its pastors and members to lower the volume.
Holy Spirit
“My wife could not sleep. She wanted to go there herself but given her condition, I told her to rest thinking that they would understand as they had done in January after a similar complaint. How wrong I was,” added Mr Kirika.
He said the situation became bad when he was shoved off the pulpit by the drummer while the rest of the men approached him baying for his blood.
“Looking through the window, I saw the youths pursuing Mr Kirika as he ran for safety calling the guards to come to his rescue,” said a neighbour who only identified herself as Dorcas.
When we approached the pastor Mrs Charlse Muyu about the attack in which two junior pastors who happen to be her stepchildren allegedly took part, she declined an interview asking us to return yesterday at 2pm.
On our return at the stipulated time, one of the deacons said they could only finish the service when the Holy Spirit told them to and we should wait.
Residents say there have been a lot of wrangles between them and the church.
“The church has no gutters and whenever it rains, all the parking lots here are flooded. Our children can’t play because the church is built on their field,” said Mr Gibson Murage.
Tension was high on Sunday as some residents were involved in heated exchanges with the church’s stewards. There was even talk of violence against members.