President William Ruto on Monday expressed deep concerns over the revelations in Kilifi county’s Shakahola forest where more than 80 bodies have been exhumed as of Tuesday, with many more believed to be buried there.
According to President Ruto, Pastor Paul Mackenzie of Good News International Church is like a terrorist who uses religion to advance what he described as “weird and unacceptable ideologies.”
“Mr. Mackenzie, who acts as a pastor, is in fact a terrible criminal. Terrorists use religion to advance their heinous acts. People like Makenzi are using religion to do exactly the same thing,” said the president.
“Terrorists use religion to advance their heinous acts. People like Makenzi are using religion to do the same thing… they are terrorists and criminals do not belong to any religion, they belong to jail and that is where they should be,” he added.
Speaking on Monday when he presided over the pass-out parade of the Kenya Prisons Service cadets, Ruto called on Kenyans to be on the lookout for those who want to abuse religion.
The Head of State revealed that he had instructed relevant agencies to take up the matter and to get to the root cause of the activities of the people who want to use religion to mislead Kenyans.
Meanwhile, several leaders have castigated Mackenzie’s religion, to begin with, Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki who said the Shakahola forest massacre was the clearest abuse of the constitutionally enshrined human right to freedom of worship and large-scale crimes under Kenyan law as well as international law have been committed.
Director of Public Prosecution Noordin Haji and Police Inspector Japhet Koome also visited the area on Monday and expressed their optimism that if the preacher is charged with radicalization and terrorism, the court will give the police more time to complete the investigation.
IG Koome further added that intelligence reports indicated Mackenzi had an accomplice from another church who the police are investigating.
Mackenzi who was arrested on April 14 was arraigned before Malindi Law Courts but was not charged after the police asked for more time to complete the investigation.
The court allowed the police to hold him for 14 days which lapse on Friday.