Picture credit: Bible Society / Clare Kendall
The sun shone. Birds sang. Children played in the grounds of a nearby school. All seemed well with the world when the Deputy President of Kenya, William Ruto, opened the sixth African Biblical Leadership Initiative forum in Nairobi.
But, according to a report from Transparency International last year, all is not well in Africa.
The report claimed that some 75 million people had paid a bribe in 2015, simply to get basic services.
The majority of Africans (58 per cent) said that corruption was getting worse. This rose to 83 per cent in South Africa.
It was against this backdrop that the ABLI conference aired the subject of how the Bible could encourage people to tackle corruption by transforming leadership.
‘You just need to look at some of the leaders of Africa,’ said the Deputy President of Kenya, to see what the problems are in the continent.
‘The destiny of communities, societies and nations is tied to the destiny of its leaders,’ he said.
‘Some of the leaders I meet carry a lot of paraphernalia. It is not only tragic for them, but for their people.’
Mr Ruto said that nations needed to base themselves in God and the Bible. ‘A nation that doesn’t believe in God is a nation destined for destruction,’ he said, adding that ABLI was ‘a very significant initiative’.
Opening devotions at the leafy compound where the conference was held were led by Dr Oliver Kisaka, former Deputy General Secretary for the National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK).
He addressed government leaders, civil servants, representatives of civic society and clerics with a stern message warning them not to commit fraud. But he added that this was rife in society, including in the Church.
‘We have been raised in a place where corruption is a present-day reality,’ he said.
‘We steal what’s there for the common good for ourselves and corruption is viewed as a means of fighting poverty.
‘We steal when we are in office because we are afraid that in 20 years we will be poor.’
But he added that, ‘The Bible remains the answer for the world. Africa must not be the continent where the Bible was buried.’
Paul Williams, CEO of the British & Foreign Bible Society said, ‘It’s tempting to rely on money and power to make us secure and happy. If we fall for this, then our leadership will do so as well.
‘Such a mindset will not exalt us, or our leadership. It will lead to disgrace and reproach for us and for those who follow us.’
The conference continues until Thursday.
Picture credit: Bible Society / Clare Kendall
Hazel Southam
