State House Chaplain, Benard Njagi, has thrown his weight behind President William Ruto's intention to construct a modern multi-million-shilling church.
Addressing members of the press on Thursday, July 10, at the State House in Nairobi, Njagi stated that a budget of between Ksh20 million to 30 million would be enough to implement the project.
He, however, clarified that he was among a team of worshippers who approached the President for the construction of the church since the current worship centre was in a dilapidated state.
According to the bishop, the construction of a new church would enable over 300 families who live within the State House to have decent places of worship.
In his proposal to the President, Njagi said he requested financial assistance from Ruto for the construction of a modern Anglican church, a Catholic worship centre, and a mosque.
"As Christians, we approached the President and asked whether he would help us construct a modern church so that we can move away from this iron sheet structure," said Njagi.
"If you observe, the place is very cold, and the children who come here to worship are likely to contract pneumonia. So we approached him to help us, and he agreed," he added.
While backing Ruto’s plan to construct a new church, Njagi revealed that the current state of the worship centre made it difficult to host worship conferences and other important gatherings.
He noted that the current Anglican church at State House was erected in 2020 with the assistance of former First Lady Margaret Kenyatta, who, during her morning runs in 2019, discovered a dilapidated structure, only to be told it was a church.
President Ruto, in his recent speech, pledged to revamp the dilapidated church. However, he dismissed claims that the new place of worship would cost Ksh1.2 billion.
Speaking on July 6 at the ACK Diocese of Embu, Ruto maintained that he did not know where the figure came from, accusing media outlets of spreading fake information.
He reiterated that there is no way the church would cost more than an 11-storey building that costs Ksh350 million.
“The Bishop has shown me the building we are constructing, and it has eleven floors. It has been estimated that it will cost Ksh350 million. Let me ask, if the church is big enough for three hundred people, can it cost a billion shillings?" Ruto questioned.
