Inside CITAM: Insider Alleges Nepotism, Inflated Tenders And Misuse Of Church Funds

Fresh claims have emerged from within CITAM circles linking Reverend Charles Obara to internal church tensions, aggressive fundraising pressure, leadership politics and repeated transfers across branches.

According to a source familiar with the matter, Obara is viewed by some insiders as a controversial figure whose strength within the church system has allegedly been his ability to push congregants to raise money aggressively.

The source claims that this is one of the reasons some senior figures within the church establishment continue to protect or support him despite complaints from sections of congregants and staff.

The source further links Obara to a past “girl-child” controversy that was previously exposed, claiming that the fallout from that matter affected his chances of rising to the position of deputy bishop.

According to the source, former Presiding Bishop David Oginde had allegedly intended to position Obara for higher office before the controversy complicated those plans. Instead, Obara was reportedly transferred from CITAM Valley Road to CITAM Karen in 2019.

The source claims that after moving to Karen, Obara initially kept a lower profile before returning to what they described as his usual fundraising style. Congregants were allegedly pressured to give towards various projects, including items such as screens, similar to what some claim had happened during his time at Valley Road.

The source also paints a picture of a leader accused of enjoying special treatment within church spaces, claiming that he allegedly preferred special seating, special drinks and separate treatment from ordinary staff.

The same source alleges that Obara was later transferred to CITAM Thika Road in January 2025 and that there are now rumours within church circles that he could be moved again, this time to Kisumu.

Below is the account as received:

“It’s the Charles Obara chap and his enablers like Oginde. They like him because of his shameless pressure tactics to raise funds. He’s a menace everywhere he goes.

He’s the one from the girl-child encounter you posted awhile back. That exposé cost him his shot to be deputy bishop, which is what Oginde had intended on his way out as presiding bishop in 2020.

Instead he got transferred from Valley Road to Karen back in 2019 after that ordeal.

Then in Karen he started his usual money hustle after laying low, pressuring the congregation to give for trivial things including screens like he had done in Valley Road.

He likes to be treated like a CEO. Special seats. Special drinks. Special treatment all the time for himself. Doesn’t even eat same food as staff.

Madharau na kiburi, but very pretentious around the right people.

He was transferred to Thika Road branch in January 2025. Now rumour is they already want to transfer him to Kisumu.”

The growing CITAM Karen saga is no longer just about money, recruitment or procurement.

Fresh complaints from a congregant now paint a picture of a church where some members allegedly feel wounded by selective discipline, harsh doctrine, hypocrisy and leadership conduct that does not match what is preached from the pulpit.

The complainant, who says they worship at CITAM Karen and have served in the Music Ministry, claims several members have been hurt by how the church handles divorce, remarriage, ministry service and internal leadership behavior.

In one account, a differently abled woman allegedly continued serving the church after her marriage collapsed, only to be told she could not serve because she was divorced. Her former husband was allegedly later made a pastor in another CITAM assembly.

In another case, a woman serving in Media and Music ministries allegedly sought guidance before marrying a widower, but the church reportedly refused to support the marriage and later asked her to step down from serving.

In a third incident, church elders were accused of skipping a congregant’s row during Holy Communion after a neighbourhood parking dispute.

Taken separately, CITAM can dismiss each complaint as an isolated misunderstanding.

Taken together, they point to a deeper problem.

Members are asking whether CITAM applies rules equally, whether women are treated more harshly than men, whether church leaders are held to the same moral standards as ordinary congregants, and whether the church is using doctrine to heal people or to punish them.

The complainant said:

“Lately, church has become one of the most troubled places to go to. The church has been hurting people in ways more than one. Slowly, members are seeking alternative places of worship where they feel welcome.”

That statement should worry CITAM leadership.

A church does not collapse in one day. It first loses trust. Then people stop speaking. Then they stop serving. Then they quietly disappear.

If these allegations are false, CITAM should respond and correct the record.

But if even part of these stories is true, then the church has a serious internal crisis.

Because a church that preaches grace but allegedly punishes the wounded, a church that preaches family but allegedly mishandles broken families, and a church that preaches integrity while members complain of hypocrisy, cannot keep hiding behind polished Sunday services.

CITAM Karen members are speaking.

The church should listen.

A CITAM Karen congregant has accused two church elders of allegedly skipping their row during Holy Communion after a neighbourhood disagreement over parking.

The allegation may appear small at first, but it raises a bigger question about the character of people entrusted with spiritual leadership inside the church.

According to the source, the couple involved are elderly neighbours who serve as church elders at CITAM Karen.

The complainant says the dispute began last year when a guest of the couple allegedly parked in front of their gate, blocking access to their home.

After returning from work, the complainant says they politely requested through estate security that the vehicle be moved.

Instead, the elderly couple allegedly insulted the watchmen, and the matter escalated until the estate chairperson was called.

The source said:

“Once upon a time last year we had a tiff about parking space. They had a guest who had parked right in front of my gate. When we came from work, I could not access my house to park the car. We politely requested the couple through the estate security to have their guest move their car to their gate. Wueh! The couple insulted the watchmen.”

According to the source, the matter did not end in the estate.

The following Sunday happened to be the first Sunday of the month, when CITAM assemblies normally partake in Holy Communion. Communion is usually served by clergy, deacons and church elders.

The complainant claims that the same neighbouring elders were serving on their aisle.

They allegedly skipped the complainant’s row.

The source said:

“As fate would have it, my neighbours were serving on our aisle. Can you believe it when I tell you that they skipped my row? So we had to request for the pastors to serve us.”

If true, this is a serious abuse of sacred responsibility.

Holy Communion is not supposed to be used as a tool of personal revenge, silent punishment or emotional blackmail. Elders are expected to rise above petty conflicts, not carry estate grudges into church service.

The complainant asked:

“Where is the integrity of these people that are appointed, nominated or elected as elders and deacons?”

That is the question CITAM Karen must answer.

Because when church elders allegedly import personal fights into spiritual duties, the problem is no longer just doctrine. It is leadership character.

A second congregant at CITAM Karen has allegedly been pushed out of ministry after seeking guidance from the church over her intention to marry a widower.

According to a source from the church, the woman, identified only as Liz, is a middle-aged member who served in both the Media Ministry and Music Ministry.

The source claims Liz had never been married before but had a son who is now in campus. She later found love with a middle-aged Kenyan man based in the United States, described as a widower.

Before marrying his deceased wife, the man had reportedly fathered a child with another woman from a previous relationship that did not work out.

According to the complainant, Liz approached CITAM Karen for guidance on marriage because she and the man were ready to settle down.

Instead of receiving support, the source claims the church rejected the move, arguing that the man had previously been married and therefore the church could not support or officiate the wedding.

The source said:

“Liz recently found love from a fellow middle-aged Kenyan man who is based in the US. He is a widower. She approached the church, CITAM Karen, where she serves in the Media Ministry and the Music Ministry, for guidance on marriage and the steps to take because they were ready to settle.”

The complainant claims Liz was later asked to step down from serving at the church.

The source added:

“Her move was not welcome. The church argues that the man was previously married and therefore they cannot support or officiate her nuptials. She was later asked to step down from serving at the church. She went ahead and married her prince charming.”

This raises serious questions about CITAM’s doctrine on marriage, remarriage and service.

If a widower seeks to marry again, does CITAM consider that wrong? If a woman who has never been married chooses to marry a widower, why should that affect her ability to serve in church?

Even more importantly, are these rules communicated clearly to congregants before they join ministries, or are they only enforced when someone’s private life becomes visible?

The source asked a direct question:

“Cyprian, what kind of doctrine is that?”

CITAM should publicly explain its position because these stories are now creating the impression of a church where members can serve faithfully for years, but one personal life decision can suddenly make them unacceptable.

CITAM Karen is facing fresh allegations after a congregant claimed that a differently abled woman who faithfully served the church was allegedly stopped from serving because she was divorced, while her former husband later became a pastor in another CITAM assembly.

According to the source, the woman, identified only as Rose, had been married to a man identified as Sam, who reportedly served as head of the Music Ministry for some time.

The couple was described as mature, with teenage children, and was allegedly viewed by many as a picture of a stable Christian family.

However, according to the complainant, the marriage later broke down after Sam allegedly started philandering and eventually left the matrimonial home.

Despite the pain of the separation, Rose reportedly continued attending church with her two daughters. The daughters were also involved in church music and played instruments during church activities.

The source claims Rose, who is differently abled, continued serving faithfully and even became involved in sign language translation during church services.

The complainant said:

“Rose kept steady and kept coming to church with her two daughters. The church embraced PWDs and Rose took up the initiative to lead the special group. She would volunteer and translate the service through sign language. She became the face of sign language translation.”

But according to the source, things allegedly changed when Rose was later told that she could no longer serve because she was a divorcee.

The complainant further claims that Rose’s former husband later became a pastor in another CITAM assembly, raising serious questions about whether church discipline is applied equally to men and women, or whether ordinary women are punished more harshly than men who are better connected.

The source said:

“Kidogo we hear the ex-hubby Sam is now a pastor in another CITAM assembly. Kidogo, Rose is told that she can’t serve because she is a divorcee. I have not seen Rose or her kids for a while.”

If true, this is a disturbing allegation.

A woman allegedly holds her family together, continues attending church, serves despite personal pain, supports sign language ministry, brings her children to church, then ends up being pushed away while the man linked to the collapse of the marriage rises elsewhere in the same church system.

CITAM must explain whether divorced members are barred from serving, whether the rule applies equally to men and women, and why a person who served the PWD community would allegedly be removed from ministry at a time when she needed spiritual support.

This is no longer just a church policy issue. It is a human issue.

A congregant from CITAM Karen has lifted the lid on what they describe as growing pain, frustration and silent exits among members who once served faithfully in the church.

According to the congregant, who says they worship at CITAM Karen and have served in the Music Ministry, the public image of the church does not reflect the private pain some members are allegedly going through.

The source claims the church has become “one of the most troubled places” to attend, with some members quietly looking for alternative places of worship where they feel more welcome, understood and spiritually safe.

For years, CITAM has positioned itself as one of Kenya’s most respected churches, known for structured ministry, polished services, strong music departments and a largely middle-class congregation. But according to the complainant, behind that polished image are stories of members who feel judged, rejected, sidelined and wounded by internal decisions.

The source says some of the complaints revolve around how the church treats divorced members, women seeking to remarry, people serving in ministries and even ordinary congregants who clash with church elders outside the church setting.

The complainant said:

“I worship at CITAM Karen. For a while I have served in the Music Ministry. Lately, church has become one of the most troubled places to go to. The church has been hurting people in ways more than one. Slowly, members are seeking alternative places of worship where they feel welcome.”

These allegations now add a new dimension to the growing CITAM saga.

Earlier complaints have touched on recruitment, money, procurement, favoritism and alleged internal rot. But this new account points to something even more sensitive: how the church allegedly handles human pain, broken marriages, remarriage, service and internal power.

The question now is simple.

Is CITAM Karen becoming a church where doctrine is being applied with compassion, or a place where wounded members are being punished while insiders and leaders continue enjoying privilege?

CITAM leadership should address these concerns directly because members are not just complaining about money. They are now complaining about pain, exclusion and hypocrisy.

An insider claiming to have worked closely around the operations of Christ Is The Answer Ministries has raised serious allegations touching on recruitment, procurement, favoritism and the handling of church resources.

The source, who requested anonymity, claims that what many congregants see publicly is different from what happens internally at the church’s head office.

CITAM is one of Kenya’s biggest churches, with thousands of members and significant resources collected through tithes, offerings and donor support from both local and international partners. According to the whistleblower, many faithful members give believing their contributions are supporting spiritual work, humanitarian programs and institutional growth, yet internally there are growing concerns over accountability, fairness and transparency.

The insider alleges that recruitment processes are often advertised publicly to create an appearance of fairness, while in reality some positions are already reserved for relatives, friends and connected individuals. The source also claims that procurement and development projects have become another area of concern, with allegations of inflated tenders and poor quality work despite huge budgets being approved.

Below is the testimony sent to this writer:

“Hello Nyakundi,

Please hide my identity.

I have worked closely around the operations of Christ Is The Answer Ministries and what many congregants see publicly is completely different from what happens internally at the head office.

CITAM is one of the biggest churches in Kenya and receives millions through offerings, tithes, and donor funding from local and international partners. Congregants faithfully give believing the money is being used to transform lives and support meaningful humanitarian and spiritual work. But internally, corruption, nepotism, hypocrisy, and misuse of influence have deeply affected the institution.

One of the biggest problems is recruitment. Vacancies are advertised publicly and interviews conducted, but most of the time the process is already predetermined. Jobs are handed to relatives, friends, and connected individuals while qualified Kenyans who genuinely attend interviews are only used to make the process appear transparent.

The HR Manager, Rahab Waturu, has turned recruitment into a family affair. She continuously brings in relatives and people connected to her circle. Recently, she brought in a relative called Moses Karanja whose qualifications leave many employees shocked, yet he continues occupying lucrative positions while more qualified and competent applicants are ignored.

What hurts many staff members is that the church publicly preaches integrity, fairness, and accountability, yet internally the exact opposite is happening. Employees are frustrated because favoritism matters more than professionalism and competence.

There is also serious rot in procurement and development projects. Tenders involving construction of church sanctuaries, schools, and other infrastructure projects are inflated through cooperation between procurement officials and business people connected to insiders. Millions are allocated, but the quality of work done does not reflect the amount spent. Some structures are poorly done despite huge budgets being approved.

From the outside, the church maintains a polished image and many congregants have no idea what is happening behind closed doors. But internally, the institution is slowly being destroyed by greed, nepotism, poor leadership, and people who are more interested in protecting networks and personal interests than serving God or the congregation honestly.

Many faithful members continue sacrificing financially thinking they are supporting a transparent ministry, yet internally workers are watching resources being mismanaged while accountability continues disappearing.”

The allegations raise serious questions about governance, recruitment practices, procurement controls and internal accountability at one of the country’s most visible church institutions.

CITAM, its leadership and the individuals named in the claims should be given an opportunity to respond to the allegations.