A former follower of Pastor Paul Nthenge Mackenzie has told the Shanzu Law Courts that the controversial preacher instructed his followers to reject the Bible, isolate themselves from their families and undertake prolonged fasting until death as a pathway to heaven.
The witness, identified as J.O, gave the testimony on Thursday as the 19th prosecution witness in the ongoing radicalisation case in which Mackenzie and seven co-accused are facing charges.
J.O told the court that six of his children, aged two, four, six, 13, 15 and 16 years, died at Kwa Binzaro, while four children from his first marriage survived.
He testified that he lived in Shakahola between May 2021 and February 2023, where he attended teachings allegedly conducted by Mackenzie under what were referred to as “Mitola” trees.
According to the witness, Mackenzie discouraged followers from reading the Bible, describing it as merely a signpost that points the way but does not accompany believers.
He further claimed Mackenzie taught that the Bible was no longer necessary because followers already had Jesus with them and could see and communicate with him, which the witness interpreted as Mackenzie referring to himself as Jesus.
The court also heard that followers were allegedly instructed to lie to government officials because all levels of administration, from the President to village elders, were considered evil. Members of other churches and relatives outside the movement were similarly labelled evil and were to be deceived.
J.O further testified that followers were forbidden from marrying because there is no marriage in heaven. Employment and ordinary family life were also allegedly discouraged as unnecessary for those preparing to enter heaven, prompting many followers to abandon their jobs, separate from their spouses and cut ties with their families.
The witness said followers were instructed to undertake prolonged fasting without food or water in preparation for death, a practice referred to as “kufunga express”, which he said meant fasting until death.
He told the court that he personally witnessed several people die after prolonged fasting and named individuals he said died in his presence.
In emotional testimony, J.O recalled how his four-year-old child repeatedly cried for milk tea before later dying. He said that after the child took his last breath, three individuals identified as Tuva, George and Kahindi arrived and shouted “amepenya”, a term he said members of the group used to signify that a person had died and gone directly to heaven.
The witness broke down as he recounted the suffering of the children, telling the court that one child repeatedly called out the names of family members, siblings and teachers while pleading for help.
He alleged that some of the accused persons present in court prevented him from intervening despite his attempts to assist the child, and said he was able to identify them by name.
J.O further inidcated that he witnessed two individuals identified as Tom and Kahindi suffocating victims, including a man identified as Owino, whom he claimed was still alive before he was allegedly suffocated.
