Methodist Church leader Joseph Ntombura: The people are happy with me
Presiding Bishop Methodist church in Kenya Rev Joseph Ntombura.
The Methodist church of Kenya presiding bishop Joseph Ntombura has told of a group of former church officials who have mounted a persistent campaign seeking to remove him from leadership.
Speaking after the mainly former and defrocked clergy visited Meru MPs seeking interventions, the bishop dismissed the group saying that “99 percent of the church was happy with his leadership”.
He said the church had registered remarkable growth and improved freedoms, and asked the former officials opposed to him to rejoin the flock and thrive together.
Addressing mourners during a requiem mass for the late Rev Jacob Munoru Kang'ang'i, Bishop Ntombura appealed to community’s elders to offer the right mentorship to the youth.
“The church is enjoying great support and the people are happy. There is expanded freedom of worship in our church and many people are prospering. Those outside are making noise,” he said.
Igembe North MP Julius Taitumu urged Bishop Ntombura to embrace the dissenting voices by engaging them in dialogue.
He revealed that the former officials had sought a meeting with the Meru MPs, but they had declined to discuss the church politics, encouraging them to resolve the issues by themselves.
“I believe when a toe is aching, the body is not healthy. It is good also for that part of the body to be treated.
“Though loyalty is key in leadership, it is important to look at the straying sheep so that they can be part of the larger team,” appealed Mr Taitumu.
There has been gurgling after Bishop Ntombura’s term was controversially extended for two years.
However, Meru Deputy Governor Mutuma M'Ethingia,who is an ordained clergyman, expressed support for Bishop Ntombura and urged the opposing side to join him.
“Let us stop bad politics. A few people want to control things against what the church laws say. You (Ntombura) are a humble leader with Solomonic wisdom, I know when asked to sit down for talks you will not decline,” he said.
The late Rev Munoru, who succumbed to asthma at Maua Methodist hospital, is survived by wife Joyce Kariamana and three children.
