President William Ruto has assured Kenyans that a judicial commission of inquiry will be established to investigate the Shakahola cult deaths and help weed out rogue religious leaders from the community.
Speaking at Makutano Stadium in West Pokot County during the interdenominational prayers, Ruto affirmed that the government will not undermine anyone, but will focus on development across all parts of the country.
He noted that though Kenya is a strong Christian nation, there are some rogue religious leaders who wanted to use religion to kill people and do evil in the society.
The Head of State said a judicial commission of inquiry will get to the bottom of what really happened in Shakahola and apprehend all the collaborators who led to the deaths of hundreds of people.
He noted that all the security personnel are who were working in Kilifi County were transferred to pave way for investigation on what really happened.
"The commission will weed out the characters who want to abuse religion. The framework will provide an agreement with religious leaders for self-regulation so that religious leaders can have a mechanism where they can point out to government those who want to abuse religion for other purposes," he said.
He observed that they will engage religious leaders and reach an agreement and weed out rogue religious leaders misusing religion for their own beneficial gain.
On Saturday, Ford Kenya led by its Secretary General and Tongaren MP John Chikati appealed to President Ruto to form a commission of inquiry into the Shakahola massacre, saying there is need for the country to know what really happened.
In a press statement, Chikati said the commission of inquiry is best placed to unearth the truth behind the Shakahola deaths since Kenyans have lost trust in the police after they ignored the red flags that could have prevented the deaths.
"Ford Kenya party highly condemns the recent killings of over 100 worshippers in Shakahola, Kilifi county, after being mislead by Paul Makenzi's cult. We demand a commission of inquiry to unravel the killings," read the statement.
Last year, Ida Odinga drew criticism from some members of the church, clergy and politicians after she proposed regulation of churches.
Ida suggested that the National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK), should regulate establishment of new churches and disband smaller ones in a bid to bring order to the religious sector.
She was forced to issue an apology after several leaders criticised her suggestion. In July 2018, Rwanda took a major step towards regulating churches that saw more than 700 churches and mosques shut down.
On planned opposition protests, President Ruto said the country held elections last year and leaders were elected in various positions, calling out for unity in the country.
He said said Sh100 million has been set aside to rebuild more than 20 schools in the first phase in bid to restore security in the region.
