Court fails to stop closure of Pastor Ezekiel's church

Ezekiel Odero of the New Life Prayer Centre and Church before the Senate last year. [File, Standard]

Pastor Ezekiel Odero's New Life Prayer Center in Kilifi is facing closure after Court of Appeal upheld a directive from the Registrar of Societies to deregister the church.

The court, led by Justices Daniel Musinga, Kathurima M'Inoti, and Mwaniki Gachoka, dismissed Odero's application to suspend the deregistration, stating that he failed to exhaust all dispute resolution mechanisms before approaching the court.

The judges agreed with High Court Justice Jairus Ngaah that Odero should have first sought intervention from the Cabinet Secretary before challenging the Registrar's decision in court.

"In light of the consistent decisions of this Court and the Supreme Court that a party must first invoke the dispute resolution mechanisms provided by the law before resorting to the High Court or courts or equal status, we are satisfied that the intended appeal is not arguable," the court ruled.

The Registrar of Societies issued the deregistration via a gazette notice on August 3, 2023, citing non-compliance with registration requirements.

"In exercise of the powers conferred by section 12 (1) of the Societies Act, the Registrar of Societies cancels the registration of the societies specified in the first column of the Schedule, with effect from the respective dates specified in the third column of the schedule," said Registrar of Societies Maria Nyariki.

Odero challenged the decision arguing that the closure violates the freedom of association and worship of his church members.

The pastor moved to the Court of Appeal saying that he was aggrieved by the High Court's decision to suspend his church licence, adding that the court erred in law.

Odero further contended that the appeal will be rendered nugatory unless the order of injunction is granted because NPCC will have to close down and wind-up its projects, thus violating its members' freedom of association and worship.

However, the appellant court ruled that his appeal was not arguable, leading to the dismissal of his application, with each party bearing its own costs