Pastor Ezekiel’s New Life Prayer Centre To Be Officially Shut A Day After Hosting Mega Worship Rally In Kasarani

Pastor Ezekiel Odero’s New Life Prayer Centre faces imminent closure, just a day after holding a massive worship rally at Kasarani Stadium....CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE

The Court of Appeal recently dismissed the church’s attempt to stop the government from shutting down its operations due to irregular registration issues.

Despite drawing thousands of worshippers to the Kasarani event, the legal battle surrounding the church’s license has reached a critical point.

The church was previously shut down last year alongside several others after their licenses were revoked. Although Pastor Ezekiel initially secured temporary court orders to prevent the closure while the case was ongoing, the High Court dismissed his petition.

Unfazed, the pastor appealed the decision to the Court of Appeal, but the three-judge bench, comprised of Justices Daniel Musinga, Kathurima Minoti, and M. Gachoka, upheld the lower court’s ruling.

According to the court, Pastor Ezekiel failed to follow the necessary legal processes before seeking judicial intervention.

The bench reiterated that he should have first appealed to the Cabinet Secretary before escalating the matter to the courts. This failure to exhaust administrative remedies ultimately sealed the church’s fate.

“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 law before resorting to the High Court, we are satisfied that the intended appeal is not arguable,” read part of the judgment.

The court also noted that the New Life Prayer Centre had not applied for exemption under the Fair Administrative Action Act, nor did it present exceptional circumstances to justify bypassing the usual dispute resolution mechanisms.

While Pastor Ezekiel argued that shutting down the church would infringe on the constitutional rights of its members to freedom of worship and association, the court held that the pastor’s failure to follow proper legal channels left no grounds for halting the closure…CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ARTICLES>>>