This archive report was first published on 13 July 2020.
Places of worship in Kenya are set to reopen tomorrow, July 14, 2020, following the protocols laid down by the Inter-faith Council. However, a number of these holy grounds continue to face dilemmas on how they will manage the congregations that might seek to access churches, mosques, and other places of worship.
According to Hassan Ole Nado, the chairperson of SUPKEM, re-opening of the mosques has brought about three dilemmas. One is to allow worshippers to come in with their praying mats but hygienically there is a likelihood of transporting the virus from wherever they come from.
Another dilemma is where people pray on the floor without mats, which brings in a challenge of continuously cleaning the mosque after people leave. The third dilemma being, providing temporary mats which will be disposed at the end of each prayer but this brings in the economic feasibility aspect.
Some places of worship, including Jamia Mosque, All Saints Cathedral, CITAM, Parklands Baptist Church (PBC), and Jubilee Christian Church, have vowed not to reopen citing 'impractical measures.'
Reverend Canon Sammy Wainaina of All Saints Cathedral expressed his concerns, saying, 'There was wisdom in setting controls because infections are going up. I being a Covid-19 survivor I wouldn’t be the advocate to bring thousands of people here. It is wisdom at all.'
On July 6, President Kenyatta announced the phased reopening of places of worship in the country in compliance with the set regulations for public gatherings.
