This archive report was first published on 12 August 2019.
The Seventh-day Adventist Church has denied reports of leadership wrangles, following a chaotic scene at the Nairobi Central SDA Church on Saturday.
General Service Unit officers blocked the entrance to the church, leaving worshipers stranded, but the church's leadership has now clarified the situation.
According to the Central Kenya Conference (CKC) leadership, the dispute involved members of the Nairobi Cosmopolitan Conference Limited (NCC) who had also been doubling up as Nairobi Central SDA Church members.
These individuals were allegedly struck off the church register but moved to court, where their petition was dismissed after they failed to prove that they had exhausted internal dispute resolution mechanisms.
CKC President Pastor John Kiragu Ngunyi stated, 'As of now, they are not members of the SDA faith and no amount of intimidation will coerce the church into negotiating with strangers.'
He also condemned the police officers' actions, saying there was no court order or legal notice barring the church members from worshiping at the venue.
'We are concerned by the fact that police action was skewed in favor of the aggressors as a person's right of worship cannot be abridged by the threat of other parties to break the law,' Pastor Ngunyi stated.
He expressed disappointment at remarks by Nairobi County Commissioner Flora Mworoa ordering the closure of the Nairobi SDA Church over the alleged wrangles.
'The church is deeply concerned with the suspicious significant access to state security machinery by the aggressors, which they seem to use to curtail freedom of worship,' added Pr. Ngunyi.
He also stated that the church will seek appropriate intervention to ensure their religious liberties are respected and protected.
