Mackenzie’s guards ate balanced diets, supervised his followers as they starved to death – CS Kindiki

Interior Cabinet Secretary Prof. Kithure Kindiki has come out to reveal that controversial preacher Paul Mackenzie of the Good News International Church cult employed armed men to watch over his followers as they starved to death.

The CS, speaking when he appeared before a Senate Ad-Hoc committee investigating the proliferation of religious organisations on Friday, disclosed that these guards-  however - were properly fed and partook of three meals a day.

According to Kindiki, this army of relatively young men were tasked with ensuring that followers of Mackenzie’s cult starved to their eventual demise, even if it meant finishing the job themselves by killing those who changed their minds mid-way.

“Mackenzie had employed armed young people to hang around his followers and supervise their starvation to death. The followers who changed their minds about starvation were either killed through strangulation or hit with blunt objects,” stated the CS.

“In some structures within Shakahola forest, we found a well laid out menu like that of a 3-Star hotel. Mackenzie scouts were eating a balanced diet next to starving and dying people.”

CS Kindiki told the Senate committee that the multi-agency team presently combing through the 50,000-acre Chakama Ranch that contains the Shakahola forest has so far recorded 241 deaths linked to Mackenzie’s cult.

He noted that the team has also rescued 91 people from the forest, out of whom 19 have so far been reunited with their families.

He further went ahead to add that the police have arrested 34 of Mackenzie’s suspected enforcers, while the missing persons desk station at the site is looking for 619 people.

The Interior boss reiterated that the ongoing probe into religious organisations is not meant to blanketly persecute all churches, but only those operating outside the confines of the law.

“We will not interfere with freedom of worship but relentlessly and ruthlessly pursue criminals hiding in religious organisations and misusing the scriptures to mislead their followers,” said Kindiki.

“Any public officer whose action or inaction, conduct, or misconduct aided in the commission of crimes at Shakahola will have a date with destiny. We will interdict and prosecute all the culpable officers.”