Musyimi Plays His Cards Close to His Chest As He Leaves NCCK
Musyimi Plays His Cards Close to His Chest As He Leaves NCCK
Today's Headlines
The Nation (Nairobi)
March 30, 2007
News Article By Lucas Barasa
"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." This is how outgoing National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK) general secretary Mutava Musyimi summarised his 14-year tenure at the helm of the Protestant churches' umbrella organisation.
The Reverend Mutava Musyimi at a past function as secretary-general of the National Council of Churches of Kenya.
The name of the Rev Musyimi, who is set to retire on September 30, has been synonymous with civil society activism for many years.
He has been actively involved in Kenya's long struggle for democracy, the search for a new constitution and the quest for peace in clash-torn areas.
The Rev Musyimi has also been at the forefront in the fight against corruption as the chairman of the Kenya Anti-Corruption Advisory Board.
Abhors corruption
He said in an interview yesterday that he said he abhorred corruption and believed that "those who are found to be corrupt must face the full force of the law."
In his activism, he followed in the footsteps of other clerics like the Rev Timothy Njoya who used the pulpit to seek social and political reforms during the Kanu era.
To the Moi administration, he was a thorn in the flesh, a disloyal and disrespectful citizen.
At the time, the Rev Musyimi was credited with the clarion call "No reforms, no elections."
In 2000 for instance, he led his organisation in warning that if there were no constitutional reforms, NCCK would boycott the General Election.
At the time, the NCCK was a key player in the Ufungamano Initiative of the parallel constitution-making process.
But when President Moi retired in 2002, the Rev Musyimi visited him at his Kabarnet Gardens home to "make peace".
"We prayed together," he said yesterday. "I explained to him why I took certain positions on issues."
To his critics, the clergyman is a darling of the Kibaki administration.
Softened criticism
But he denied that he had softened his criticism of the government since Narc came to power.
"After the Kibaki administration took over, we sat down and decided on what we were going to do including building members' and people's capacity, advocacy and lobbying within government," he said.
He said NCCK's criticism of the Moi administration was because it was less than honest on issues.
"We were vilified as NCCK (during the Moi era). Kibaki is however a person we struggled with in Ufungamano," he said.
According to him, mass action was the only language the Moi government understood.
"Journalists think we have softened or forsaken our values but it is not in terms of issues. We have only changed our strategy," he said. "During the past regime it was principled opposition but now it is principled collaboration. This is a policy decision made by the council."
His announcement that he would be stepping down as NCCK general secretary caught many by surprise and left them questioning where he would be heading. But he says his options are still open.
"May be I enjoy business, or might go back to the pulpit or teaching. There are many options," he said.
Born in Embu in 1952, he joined the NCCK as general secretary in 1993, replacing the Rev Samuel Kobia.
A father of two, the Rev Musyimi attended Riakanau Primary and Kangaru Secondary schools before joining the University of Nairobi for his Bachelor of Education degree.
He later attended the University of London for a Bachelor of Divinity before becoming the first Kenyan Baptist pastor.
As pastor, the Rev Musyimi built a reputation for taking positions on issues of social justice especially after the 1982 coup attempt and the queue voting system.
'Kanu is supreme'
"One Sunday I was walking to church when I saw a screaming headline - 'Kanu is supreme'. It made me wonder what had happened to the Constitution and Parliament," he told the Nation.
The clamour for constitutional change, he said, was followed by tribal clashes which started in Miteitei, Nandi District in 1991. According to him, this made the church not to support anything that would compromise the human rights of Kenyans.
The move created friction between the Rev Musyimi and the Government, compelling him to seek refuge in foreign embassies to avoid the wrath of the dreaded Special Branch.
Just ahead of the 1992 General Election, the Rev Musyimi was appointed a member of the National Election Monitoring Unit.
After the poll, he played a key role in convincing the then Opposition leaders Kenneth Matiba, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga and Mwai Kibaki to accept the results of elections and file their complaints in court.
Looking back at his tenure, the Rev Musyimi cites the transformation of NCCK from an implementation body to a facilitator of projects by member churches, professionalisation of staff and financial sustainability as some of his achievements.
The number of workers has been trimmed from 450 to 160, while directors were reduced from 25 to four. The council also raises its own core budget, he said.
"That is why I like Kibaki because 95 per cent of the national budget is from our own taxes. If you believe in something you must be able to fund it," he said.
In the last eight years, the Rev Musyimi said, NCCK has invested more than Sh700 million on projects and also gained more support from bilateral donors.
Guest houses
The projects include offices and guest houses in Nairobi, Kisumu, Eldoret, Kilifi and Nakuru.
NCCK is also involved in health, education, food security, peace, environment, constitutional reforms and refugee issues.
The clergyman said he was a great believer of results and not playing to the gallery.
"If you can get results quietly there's no need of making noise like we did during President Moi's administration," he said.
On the referendum, he said, the NCCK backed out "because ethnic sensitivities were high".
"I was shocked some communities were not wanted. As a country we saw we were on a dangerous path. At Bomas it was 'them versus us' and issues were not important. The discussions were framed on animosity, suspicion and politics and not constitution...We saw the best thing was to take a back seat and wait."
The Rev Musyimi laughed off at suggestions that in 2002 that he should have been the opposition's compromise presidential candidate.
His name had been floated together with Dr Willy Mutunga's who was also involved in the struggle for human rights and constitutional reforms.
Five years down the line, the Rev Musyimi said the proposal was flattering but he had not finished his work at NCCK and did not want to use it as a stepping stone to politics. He also had little experience then of governing, he said.
"I wanted to leave NCCK quietly by end of this year. I made the decision long time ago," he said, adding that he was now more experienced in leadership.
The Rev Musyimi said he felt honoured to have worked at NCCK and winning the trust of churches and donors.
Although he could not disclose his next move, he said he was leaving because he felt he had done his work.
He only said: "It is time to move on. My energies must now go into getting my successor. After that I can talk about the future."
Asked about reports that he intends to join politics and vie for the Gachoka parliamentary seat, the Rev Musyimi said the media had a right to speculate.
He is married to lawyer Nyambura Musyimi. Their daughter, Ms Mueni-Nyokabi, is also a lawyer studying for her Masters degree in Theology in the US while their son, Syano Musyimi is an undergraduate in the UK.
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