When a man of the cloth is found naked, let’s cover his family

By Peter Kimani

Kenya: My heart goes out to the family of preacher who was found dead in a girlfriend’s house in Buru Buru estate this week.

The man is said to have died in the throes of excitement, suspected to have been fuelled by performance-enhancing drug, Viagra. He was 70; his friend is aged 40.

The woman offered a different explanation. She said the man had gone to pray for her, although she did not reveal the big issues that merited the preacher’s solo intercession. After all, God assures where two or three are assembled, He will be in their company.

And to verify her claims, the unnamed woman pointed to a jar of special oil by the bedside that the preacher had been using on her.

As to why the man was naked when he died, she simply said he had sought some rest after a marathon prayer. There is no need to dispute her story since the only other person who would have been able to recant it is the pastor. Now that he is gone, we may have to rely on the woman’s version of events. But that’s not my problem.

Next of kin

Rather, I am more concerned about the manner in which the deceased’s family learnt of his passing.

A taxi driver who was called to the scene is reported to have recognised him, and insisted on calling his family before he took his remains to the morgue.

The question that lingers is whether the police exercised the legal requirement of withholding such a victim’s identity until the next of kin is notified.