The “Global Peace Leadership” conference, jointly organized by the Global Peace Foundation (GPF) and the Inter-Religious Council of Kenya, among other partners to promote peace, development, and cooperation across the continent has offered prayers for Kenya as protesters demand total rejection of Finance Bill, 2024.
It kicked off on the June 25, 2024 and ends today, June 27, days after President William Ruto declined to sign Finance Bill into law on Wednesday amid protests that saw Parliament premises breached.
“We are one family under God and that is why we have gathered to pray for this nation. If we do not, we will be failing in our responsibility as humans who share this same walk as Africans. We ask the nation of Kenya to not be afraid. We know that Peace will prevail because God has the power to restore peace,” the Regional Representative for Africa, GPF, Rev. Fr. Canice Chinyeaka Enyiaka, said, adding that a quick resolution to the issues as raised by the protesters should be addressed.
The forum mainly highlighted Africa’s heritage, spirituality, and traditional values in the push for a renewal of “African approaches” to peace and sustainable development.
Besides the family session themed “Familial Relationships”, other breakout sessions included roles and leadership, community-driven peace building session themed “Local Leadership with Moral Authority; A Catalyst of African Renaissance”.
Speaking during the Community Driven Peace Building session, Rev. Dr. Sam Kobia, Chairman of the National Cohesion and Integration Commission stressed the need for Africa coming together in one voice when it comes to issues affecting the continent such as a largely disenfranchised public with poor leadership, poverty and lack of development.
“The basic ethos of Ubuntu is I am because you are. This, therefore, means that if you are not at peace with yourself, with your neighbour, with God and with the environment then we should admit that something is fundamentally missing. Ubuntu is both an important philosophy and process for us to achieve peace in Africa,” said Kobia.
