Me, marry? Not until cleared by church

By Vincent Mabatuk

A teacher told the court he will remain single until a church clears him of allegations a woman made against him 17 years ago.

Mr Josephat Kabutiei, 45, accuses African Inland Church’s Bishop Silas Yego and the Reverend John Chirchir of frustrating his efforts to have his name cleared.

The woman had allegedly claimed Kabutiei had planned to scuttle her marriage so that he could marry her. Kabutiei, who was then a youth leader at AIC Koiserat Church in Kabarnet, said Mary Komen’s allegations led to his excommunication.

The church, on its part, accused Kabutiei of being "a person not in full control of his mental facilities" and wanted the matter dismissed.

But Kabutiei says he has never married or had a relationship with a woman because of the trauma the claims had caused.

He also stopped giving offerings, saying Christian virtue requires one to clear any issue she or he holds with another before offering sacrifices to God.

"The allegations by the woman led to me being shunned, scolded, and besmirched by my colleagues and the Church authority," Kabutiei says in documents filed at the Nakuru High Court.

Kabutiei took to the witness stand where he told the court that following the matter, he had taken his complaint before the church’s dispute resolution mechanism and finally decided to move to court.

False claims

He told the court that the woman later confessed she had made false accusations against him.

Although the woman was willing to withdraw the matter before the church, the complainant told the court the church refused to heed to her calls.

Nakuru High Court judge Justice Enyera Emukule gave Kabutiei’s lawyer Kiprono Ngetich until May 16 to file submissions.