Afrobarometer study: Kenyans trust churches more than govt institutions

According to a recent research, Kenyans trust religious leaders more than other government agencies.
Religious organizations, according to Afrobarometer’s research, are the most trusted because of their role in administration and leadership.
Oscar Otele, the firm’s Co-National Investigator, commented, “Given that this is an election year, we notice a concerning lack of faith in the IEBC; nevertheless, we note strong levels of trust in Kenya’s religious bodies from the two largest denominations: Christians and Muslims.”
On February 2, the General Secretary of the National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK), Chris Kinyanjui, appeared before the Constitutional Implementation Oversight Committee.
During the session, Kinyanjui expressed concerns that the proposed changes to the Election Campaign Financing (Amendment) Bill 2021 will weaken the oversight mechanisms on campaign financing.
Further evidence of this trust of religious institutions was seen when the comments by Ida Odinga, Former Prime Minister Rails Odinga’s wife, concerning the regulation of churches was met with great criticism and disdain by many Kenyans leading to her offering a public apology and withdrawing the statement.
The research network also noted that religion has the capability to shape how governance will be carried out once a new government is elected this coming August.
Following in second place was the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) with 66 percent of Kenyans stating their trust in the army.
Fewer than half of Kenyans express trust in the Independent Electoral Boundaries Commission (IEBC), National Assembly, Senate, governors, county assemblies, and the police.