As 2027 polls beckon, the Church must raise its voice

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President William Ruto and Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops after a meeting at State House, Nairobi. [File, Standard]

August carries a particular memory in Kenya’s history of the Church’s relationship with power. Bishop Alexander Kipsang Muge was killed in August 1990. Ten years later, in August 2000, Father John Anthony Kaiser was also killed. Both men had been outspoken on justice, human rights and the conduct of political power.

Twenty six years after Kaiser’s death, August 2026 finds Kenya once again looking towards an election. It is worth asking what the Church’s prophetic voice should look like as the country heads towards 2027.

The lesson from Muge and Kaiser is not that the Church should recreate the politics of the past. It is that religious leadership carries responsibilities beyond administering institutions and filling pews. When political power threatens human dignity, the Church cannot afford to look away.