The controversy surrounding President William Ruto's donation to the Soweto Catholic Church has taken a new twist as a section of Kayole residents now want the church to accept the President's gift.
On Sunday, November 17, the President donated KSh 600,000 to the church's choir and Parish Missionary council, while a further KSh 2 million was donated towards the construction of the priest's house. Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja donated KSh 200,000.
What ensued after Ruto's generous donation was a spate of criticism from a number of parties, including ordinary Kenyans, who flooded Archbishop Philip Anyolo's email to compel him to reject the cash goodies.
The church eventually responded by releasing a statement on Tuesday confirming the rejection of donations.
"These funds will be refunded to the respective donors. Furthermore, the promised additional Sh3 million for the construction of the Fathers' house, as well as the donation of a parish bus by the President, are hereby declined," said Archbishop Anyolo in a statement on behalf of the Catholic Church.
However, some locals remain divided on the donations, asking the church to accept the donation or hand it to them.
One Soweto resident was particularly welcoming of the President's cash donation, saying, "Ruto is the president, so when he contributes it will make headlines. As a community, we would like to see the money returned to the church so it can further projects."
On Tuesday, other members of the local Soweto community called on the President to channel the donations to ordinary residents.
Meanwhile, the standoff between the church and the state regarding the donation took a new twist after State House revealed the church was yet to refund the money.
State House Spokesperson Hussein Mohamed said that although the Catholic Church declined Ruto's donation through Anyolo, the church had not refunded it.
''By the end of the day (Tuesday, November 19) we have not received any money back,'' Hussein said in an interview.
According to the church, the President's donation was in contravention of the Public Fundraising Appeals Bill 2024 which states that any person who solicits or receives money or a benefit conducts a fundraising appeal regardless of whether the representation made was direct or indirect.
