Lucas Barasa
4 July 2009
Nairobi — The government is turning to divine intervention in its efforts to promote reconciliation and restore peace in areas hit by post-election violence.
The Office of the President through the Ministry of Special Programmes has approached Dr David Owuor, the self-styled prophet and increasingly popular preacher, to help forge peace and repentance in areas that were adversely affected by violence.
Dr Owuor of the Repentance and Holiness ministry is also the man who baptised Prime Minister Raila Odinga earlier this year and promised to reach out to President Kibaki as well.
In an interview with the Sunday Nation, Special Programmes Permanent Secretary Mohamed Ali said Dr Owuor had the government's authority to participate in countrywide prayers and fasting to foster healing.
The new programme will involve conducting prayers at places that were adversely affected by the violence, which will culminate in a national prayer day in Nairobi.
Mr Ali was accompanied by Dr Owuor at his office where it was also announced that several ministers had met the religious leader and pledged to ensure the meetings succeed.
"This is the only way we can promote long-lasting peace among the people," said Mr Ali.
The government will not provide any financial assistance to Dr Owuor's ministry, said the PS.
"But the police and the provincial administration officers will provide security and transport during the rallies," he said.
Last weekend, Dr Owuor held prayers in Eldoret where several people returned items they said they had looted during the post-election violence.
Members of communities involved in chaos including the Kalenjin, Kikuyu, Luo, Luhya and Kisii mixed freely, prayed and asked for forgiveness from each other so that they can move on with their lives.
Dr Owuor described as superficial and temporary efforts to provide houses to the displaced people, form peace committees and tribunals, and enlist the services of mediators.
"It is the time for the hearts of the people to be healed," he said. "Lasting peace can only be found if communities forgive each other, own up their sins and repent. Repentance will save the country from the agony of tribunals, including top leaders being taken to the Hague."
Arresting and prosecuting post-election violence suspects would not guarantee peace and that most of the political and government leaders he had talked to noted that national repentance and forgiveness was "only way to preserve peace that has been achieved since the end of post-election."
"The government leaders have not also fallen short of warning that the arrest and arraigning of political leaders in a local tribunal or ICC will most definitely spark a wave of violence in country, and push the nation back to December 2007 violence or worse," he said.
Dr Owuor said he was chosen by the government to spearhead the healing process because he had predicted the chaos way back in 2005 and that many people asked for him during various meetings.
He cited the Eldoret meeting where people from various communities repented their "sins" as true forgiveness and reconciliation.
He warned that conflicts in the country were taking a new dimension, citing the recent incidents in Central Province where some members of families killed each for being either members of outlawed Mungiki sect or vigilante and thus required spiritual intervention.
The Eldoret meeting attended by a large crowd will be followed by another in Naivasha from July 24-26.
Naivasha MP John Mututho is involved in organising the meeting which Dr Owuor said is expected to be attended by President Kibaki, Mr Odinga.
Dr Owour said more than 100 MPs had been invited. Dr Owuor said the stolen goods returned during his meetings will be displayed during the final prayers in Nairobi.
Ms Eunice Chebet, who coordinates peace and reconciliation efforts in the Ministry of Special Programmes, said the government decided to involve Dr Owuor due to the big number of people his meetings attract.
"We expect the last meeting at Uhuru Park to attract thousands of people," she said.
More than 1,300 people were killed, 600,000 displaced and property worth billions destroyed during the violence sparked by disputed presidential elections results.
A highly learned, he boasts of a doctorate in biochemical genetics from Israel's Haifa University, where he specialised in DNA sequencing.
His academic credentials also include qualifications, research and teaching experience at the University of Chicago's Centre of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology and University of Medicine and Dentistry in New Jersey in the US.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2009 The Nation. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
