Leaders allied to the United Opposition have vowed to pursue legal action against Deputy President Kithure Kindiki after a dramatic standoff at Kaaga Methodist church in Maru County, which prevented them from attending a church service on Sunday, March 8.
Speaking at a separate church service at EATC Njotene, Wiper Patriotic Front leader Kalonzo accused the government of allegedly resorting to intimidation tactics to suppress opposition figures as he detailed their version of events of what went down on Sunday morning.
“This morning, the United opposition was denied the chance to witness the induction of a good Bishop,” Kalonzo said.
According to Kalonzo, officers physically blocked their entry to the church compound, describing the move as an attack on fundamental freedoms.
He went on, “This is a deliberate act of political repression carried out at the House of God.”
Kalonzo specifically pointed an accusing finger at Kindiki, whom he accused of being the mastermind of the police’s attempts to block opposition from the same church where the Deputy President attended and addressed residents.
While clarifying that the opposition had no dispute with the church leadership or the congregation, Kalonzo insisted the disagreement was purely political, adding that deploying police officers to bar political leaders and citizens from attending a church service reflected a government acting out of fear.
“The deputy president used the police to bar citizens from worshipping freely. That is not governance. Those are marks of a regime gripped with fear,” he said.
“We shall be pursuing all available legal and constitutional avenues in response to what happened in Meru today.”
Also at the church service in Njotene was former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, who claimed the government made a last-ditch attempt to block opposition from attending the church service after their successful tours in the Meru region over the weekend.
“We had been invited by the bishop to Kaaga Methodist to witness his inauguration, but when we got to Meru someone attached to President William Ruto called Kindiki tried to stop us,” Gachagua alleged.
Gachagua further claimed that police officers, including a large deployment of General Service Unit (GSU) personnel, had been stationed at the church to restrict entry.
Despite the standoff, the opposition leaders maintained that they would continue engaging with the public and challenging what they described as political intimidation by the state.