Kenya’s well known televangelists, Pastor Ezekiel Odero, has suffered a setback after an Appellate Court declined to issue an order stopping the deregistration of The New Life Prayer Centre church.

Why Odero went to Court

Odero had moved to court seeking to subvert the High Court decision that granted the government the leeway to deregister his church.

The celebrated preacher’s prayer centre was among the churches listed for deregistration by the Registrar of Societies on grounds of breaching the Agency’s regulations.

In his application, Odero sought for a temporary order to block the deregistration of his church, a request which the court granted the preacher pending hearing and determination of the case.

Court ruling on Pastor Ezekiel’s application

In its ruling, the court dismissed the preacher’s application on grounds that Odero and other church officials had not exhausted other dispute resolution mechanisms provided by the law before resorting to the courts.

“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,” the court ruled.

The preacher through his lawyer Danstan Omari, applied for the court to bar the government from interfering with the church’s operations. Odero further asked the court to compel the Registrar of Societies and the Inspector General of Police to ensure the safety of the church.

While addressing the press outside the courtroom, Odero’s lawyers accused the government of attempting to frustrate the preacher’s ministry through what he termed as unscrupulous claims.

“It’s suspicious. It’s a clear manifestation against Pastor Ezekiel. Notices to close have never been served. No notice to show cause has been issued as provided by the rules as required by the constitution,” Omari claimed.

The lawyers further alleged mischief by the government in a bid to block a suit filed by the preacher where he demanded multi-million compensation for unwarranted arrest and detention.

Besides Odero’s church, the Registrar of Societies also deregistered four other churches. The announcement was made through a gazette notice.