Kenya bans night prayers in churches, to curb teenage pregnancy

Narok County, a town west of Nairobi, became the second county in Kenya to announce the ban of night prayers organised by Churches in a bid to curb teenage pregnancy.

According to Kenyan authorities in Narok County, night prayers organised by Churches is the major cause of the rising statistics of early pregnancies among school going teenagers in the area. Citizen TV reported on Sunday that Narok County Commissioner George Natembeya issued a ban on night prayers after linking them to early motherhood.

He told the broadcaster that in March 2018, 17 girls from Suswa Girls Secondary School in Narok County were found to be pregnant.

However it was gathered that Natembeya’s night prayer ban announcement, has since sparked mixed reactions among Christians in Kenya. While some told the government to protect the county’s minors, others stressed that the directive is against freedom of worship in the country.

Samuel Nganga, a resident of Nairobi said: “This is ridiculous, I don’t understand how prayers at night can be related to immorality, I think the county commissioner has done no research. Do not provoke God in Narok, it might just bounce back on you. Don’t try. Narok pastors kindly plan a ‘kesha’ at the Narok stadium and invite the county commissioner.”

James Ndiga said, ” I started attending night prayers in my teens and have never heard people getting babies in the morning, the only place Kenyans feel more secure is in the church.”

“This is one of the many ways of fighting Christ,but GOD is able in fighting his wars,have an eye on this,the one who banned kesha prayers will not be the one to uplift the ban,” Nicholas Muendo, a resident of Machakos remarked.

In 2014, it was reported that the Police in Malindi, a town in Malindi Bay, southeastern Kenya banned night prayers which they claimed had become avenues for extortion, according to Daily Nation. The same town, in 2004 suspended Street preachers, unless sanctioned by police.