PCEA moves to stop sentencing of clerics found guilty of contempt

The Presbyterian Church of East Africa (PCEA) has moved to halt the sentencing of two senior clerics including Moderator Rt Rev Patrick Thegu Mutahi who were found guilty of contempt of court in a dispute over church leadership.

A church leader has filed fresh court papers arguing that the original petitioner lacked legal standing, as he was not a church member as claimed.

The church’s moderator, Rt. Rev Mutahi, and Rev Dr Robert Waihenya, PCEA’s secretary general, are scheduled to appear in court for sentencing after being found guilty of defying judicial orders barring the installation of David Nderitu Ndumo as honorary treasurer.

In an urgent application, PCEA Muguga Parish minister Moses Mwaura Ndegwa has asked the court to halt the sentencing scheduled for December 15, 2025, and to review its November 26, 2025, ruling.

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The court had determined that Reverends Mutahi and Waihenya disobeyed its April 2024 orders in a dispute over church governance.

Mr Ndegwa warned that unless the court intervenes, the clerics risk punishment arising from what he termed a fundamentally flawed case.

At the centre of his application is a challenge to the petitioner Benjamin Mburu, who filed suit against PCEA leadership in April 2024 to oppose Mr Ndumo’s installation.

Mr Ndegwa contends that Mr Mburu was never a member of PCEA Kikuyu Township Congregation, contrary to his claims at the time of filing the case.

“The plaintiff was not a member of the Kikuyu Township Congregation of the Presbyterian Church of East Africa as he alleged,” the application states, adding that Mr Mburu “lacked the capacity to file this suit from the beginning.”

According to Mr Ndegwa, this defect invalidates the entire case.

As the parish minister of Muguga Parish and moderator of Muguga Presbytery, Mr Ndegwa is seeking to be joined to the proceedings as an interested party, arguing that his position gives him a direct stake in the matter.

“I therefore have locus to be enjoined in this suit to enable me to tender material evidence which was inadvertently left out,” his affidavit states.

He maintains that had this evidence been presented earlier, the court would not have ruled against the church leaders.

Irreparable loss and damage

Mr Ndegwa further warned that proceeding with sentencing before his application is heard would occasion “irreparable loss and damage” to both himself and the church.

He has asked the court to stay all proceedings arising from the November ruling, review and set aside the contempt orders, and dismiss Mr Mburu’s case entirely.

The contempt ruling stemmed from a wider dispute in which Mr Mburu sought court intervention, accusing PCEA leadership of violating orders restraining Mr Ndumo’s installation.

Mr Mburu argued that the appointment breached church rules and constitutional provisions governing leadership and financial oversight. Despite the court’s injunction, the installation went ahead in April 2024 at St Andrews Church, Nairobi, during the 24th General Assembly.

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Mr Mburu subsequently returned to court, leading to the contempt finding against Reverends Mutahi and Waihenya.

In his latest filing, Mr Ndegwa insists that the dispute is founded on a false premise, reiterating that Mr Mburu lacked standing from the outset, thereby rendering all subsequent orders defective.

Under Kenyan law, contempt of court — defined as wilful disobedience of judicial orders — attracts penalties including fines or imprisonment, aimed at safeguarding the authority of the judiciary.

The High Court is now expected to determine whether to admit Mr Ndegwa’s application, stay the sentencing, and review the contempt ruling ahead of the scheduled sentencing.

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