Court rejects Pastor Ezekiel's request to suspend church license cancellation

The Court of Appeal has dismissed an application by evangelist Ezekiel Odero, seeking to suspend the cancellation of the license of his Kilifi-based church, pending the determination of his case.

A three-judge bench of the Court of Appeal on Wednesday dismissed the application stating that Mr Odero had failed to exhaust available dispute resolution mechanisms, before moving to court.

Mr Odero challenged the cancellation of the registration of Newlife Prayer Centre & Church (NPCC) on May 18, last year, over the failure to file returns.

Justices Daniel Musinga, Kathurima M’Inoti, and Mwaniki Gachoka noted that instead of first appealing the cancellation to the Interior Cabinet Secretary, before appealing to the High Court, Mr Odero filed the case 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. Accordingly, this application is hereby dismissed,” said the judges.

The Registrar of Societies said the church is obligated by Section 30 of the Societies Act to furnish its returns, accounts, and documents, every year.

The Registrar added that the failure to submit the returns constitutes a criminal offence and continued default upon demand is a ground for cancelation or suspension of registration of a society.

The court heard that NPCC defaulted in filing its annual returns and on April 13, 2023, the Registrar of Societies demanded the filing of the returns for the year 2021/2022.

NPCC did not comply and on April 27, 2023, the Registrar asked Pastor Odero to show cause within 21 days, why the registration should not be cancelled.

After failing to get a response, the Registrar went ahead and cancelled the registration on May 18 and published the decision in a gazette notice, on the following day.

Mr Odero, together with Frankline Kilonzo, and Alice Nafula Wanyama challenged the cancellation before the High Court, but the case was thrown out.

He moved to the Court of Appeal saying the church will have to close down and wind up its projects, thus violating its members’ freedom of association and worship.

Mr Odero argued that there have been numerous attempts by state organs to persecute him and his church, frustrate ministry, and shut down the church and other projects without a justifiable cause.

The appellate court dismissed the application stating that NPCC did not apply for exemption under the Fair Administrative Action Act, or present before the High Court any exceptional circumstance to justify refusal to use the available channels to settle the matter.