KDF officer elected as Bishop on ACK Church

A Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) man has been elected to become the third bishop of the Nyahururu Anglican Church of Kenya (ACK) diocese.

 Reverend Major Samson Mburu Gachathi garnered landslide support from the youthful generation of clergy in the Electoral College members who gathered to cast their votes at the Church Cathedral in Nyahururu town, Laikipia County on Saturday.

 He beat two other candidates, Ven Canon Anthony Wanjahi and Very Rev Daniel Ogunyu who is the provost of the Cathedral. Although the votes garnered by each candidate were not announced, sources indicate the Bishop-elect got 22 of the 23 votes cast thus ending the exercise in one round.

 The election was overseen by three bishops, Timothy Gicheru of Murang’a, Emmanuel Chemengich of Kitale and Simon Onyango of Southern Nyanza.

Church constitution

Aged 48 years, Gachathi will be at the helm of the Diocese that covers Nyandarua, Laikipia and parts of Samburu counties, for about 17 years before attaining the retirement age of 65 as per the Church constitution. He will be consecrated on June 23 this year in a ceremony to be presided over by the ACK national head archbishop Jackson Ole Sapit.

 Gacathi takes over from Stephen Kabora who retired late last year after holding the post for ten years.

He holds a Master of Arts in Project Planning and Management from the University of Nairobi, a Bachelor of Science in Military Science from Egerton University and a Bachelor of Divinity, St Paul’s University.

He currently serves as a Protestant Church Chaplain (Archdeacon/Senior Chaplain Nanyuki) in the Kenya Defense Forces and has previously served as chaplain in various KDF barracks across the country.

Major Gachathi has previously been deployed with military officers serving under the African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM).

He has also served in various ministry positions at the All Saints Cathedral Church, Nairobi, ACK Diocese of Nyahururu and St Paul’s University.