From: People For Peace
Colleagues Home & Abroad Regional News
BY FR JOACHIM OMOLO OUKO, AJ
NGONG-KENYA
MONDAY, APRIL 16, 2012
The long awaited ordination of Very Rev. Fr. John Oballa Owaa as the third Bishop of Ngong Catholic Church Diocese finally took place on Saturday April 14, 2012. It was attended by over 25,000 people, including about 2,000 priests and 4, 000 nuns, making it one of the biggest Episcopal ordinations in Kenya. All bishops including emeritus attended, apart from Joseph Mairura of Kisii Diocese.
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John Cardinal Njue of Nairobi Archdiocese who has also been the administrator of Ngong Diocese for about 3 years in his written sermon pleaded with Ngong Diocesan priests to collaborate well with their new bishop.
The majority of priests in Ngong are of the Kikuyu ethnic community, 1 Luo priest from Kilgoris, 2 from Moshi Diocese, Tanzania, and 3 from Kisii community, few Wakamba and about 3 from pure Maasai community. There are also missionary priests and religious men and women working in Ngong.
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Njue told Oballa to stand firm on matters of justice and peace, especially defending the rights of children, particularly molested children. He said Oballa should not be cowed in condemning impunity committed by public leaders, especially by politicians.
Area MP, Prof George Saitoti was the only politician present. Other politicians were not invited to avoid preaching seeds of division and hatred among ethnic communities in Kenya, especially through tribal associations such as Gema and Kamatusa.
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What has triggered debate among Catholic bishops is the surprise attendance of Bishop Cornelius Korir of Eldoret Diocese at the Eldoret meeting of members of the Kalenjin, Maasai, Turkana and Samburu (Kamatusa) communities to anoint Eldoret North MP William Ruto to run for president. Bishop Korir was among the bishops present during the ordination in Ngong.
Mr Ruto is accused at the ICC for crimes committed during the 2007/8 violence that claimed more than 1,300 lives and led to the displacement of hundreds of thousands of others mainly from the Rift Valley of which Korir got the award for trying to unite and heal the tribes in the province.
Those who have condemned the meetings include Mombasa Catholic archbishop Boniface Lele, Mumias ACK bishop Beneah Salala and Kericho-based Segemik Parish priest Fr Ambrose Kimutai as well as Archbishop Ngede of Kisumu.
John Oballa Owaa was appointed as the third Bishop of Ngong by the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI on January 7, 2012. He takes over from Bishop Cornelius Schilder, M.H.M who resigned in August 2009.
The first bishop of Ngong Diocese was Fr. Colin C. Davies ordained Bishop on February 27, 1977. He remained Bishop until his retirement at the required age of 75 years in 2002. Right Rev. Fr. Cornelius Schilder was appointed the second Bishop on November 23, 2002 and ordained on January 25, 2003.
Located in the Ecclesiastical province of Nairobi in Kenya, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Ngong was established as Apostolic Prefecture of Ngong from Metropolitan Archdiocese of Nairobi and Kisumu on October 20, 1959 and promoted as Diocese of Ngong on December 9, 1976.
The history of the Diocese dates back in 1913 when Catholic missionaries made exploratory expeditions into the region and made Kilgoris their permanent residence in 1955. This resulted in the establishment of The Prefecture Apostolic of Ngong on October 20, 1959. The Prefecture was entrusted to the Mill Hill Missionary Society.
Archbishop Okoth terms the naming of Oballa as the Bishop of Ngong as a blessing to Kisumu Archdiocese. This is because one of its first Missionary priests, Monsignor John. de Reeper who was the first Prefect Apostolic of Ngong appointed in January 1960 was named Bishop of Kisumu in January 1964. He is the one who ordained Fr Zacchaeus Okoth who is the current Archbishop of Kisumu.
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On July 22, 1964 Fr. Colin C. Davies was appointed to succeed Monsignor de Reeper as Prefect Apostolic until his was appointment as Bishop of Ngong on December 15, 1976. Reeper was among the first four Missionary priests appointed for Ngong Diocese.
There are 29 parishes in Ngong Diocese and one Sub-Parish of St Lwanga Nkoroi. They are classified in four Clusters, namely Ngong Development Cluster made up of 13 parishes (zones) namely; Ngong, Matasia, Noonkopirr, Matasia, Embulbul,Ewuaso O Kidong’i, Ong’ata Rongai, Nkoroi, Kiserian, Magadi, Kajiado, Namanga and Kandisi with its headquarter in Kiserian Parish which was established in 1956. The Cluster also hosts the Diocesan Secretariat at Bishop’s house. It has a population of 274,958 according to the 1999 national population census.
Narok Development Cluster is made up of Narok, Nairragie Enkare, Ololulung’a, Mulot, Lemek, Oloikirikirai, Naroosura and Entasekera parishes with its headquarter in Narok parish where a mission house and community outreach was established in 1960. Presently, population is estimated at 365,750 residents, mainly Maasai.
Kilgoris Development Cluster is located in the western end of the Diocese and comprise of Kilgoris, Abossi and Lolgorien parishes. Kilgoris is where the first missionary house and community outreach in Catholic Diocese of Ngong was established in 1955. The population according to 1999 national census is 70,591 persons, predominantly Maasai.
Loitokitok Development Cluster was founded in 1970. The church first established a house at Rombo mission in 1962. The constituent parishes includes: Sultan Hamud, Lenkisem and Mashuru.
According to the 1999 population and housing census, the area has an estimated population of 131,296 persons, predominantly Maasai. This area is the home of Amboselli Game Reserve at the foot of Mt Kilimanjaro, and home to some of the largest elephant herds in the world.
These Parishes are fully run by either two priests or in other cases one. Among the oldest parishes are Kilgoris, Ngong, Rombo, Narok, Kiserian,Kajiado, Loitokitok, Nairagie Enkare, Namanga, Mulot, Lemek, Entasekera, Ongata Rongai , Magadi ,Olooikirikirai, Abosi and Lolgorian.
Discussions are underway to split some of our bigger parishes into three or four parishes. These include Oloikirikirai and Kiserian. The Diocese of Ngong has two vicars general one to assist the Bishop in matters pertaining to finances, and the other in pastoral matters.
The Diocese covers an area of 47,000 square kilometres, a population of approx. 1,011,000 people, Catholics 83,247, 29 parishes, 53 priests (39 diocesan and 14 religious), 40 religious brothers, 143 sisters and 19 seminarians.
Some of the challenges in Ngong Diocese include frequent droughts, human-wildlife conflicts, food insecurity, water scarcity, environmental degradation, and inter-ethnic conflict, especially in Kilgoris which for a long time has been known as one of the areas with conflict hot spots in Kenya.
The main causes of the disputes are over land and boundaries, cattle theft, grazing land disputes, access to water points and tribal clashes/differences between the Maasai clans over access and control of resources.
Demographically, two main communities occupy the district, the Maasai and Kipsigis. The Kuria community borders the Maasai on the South Western part and is as well settled in a number of administrative locations within Transmara district.
Persistence of conflicts in the area has always slackened growth and development of the area over the years, owing to the fact that peace is a prerequisite for successful development.
Kilgoris is one of the hottest constituencies in Kenya.It en campuses Trans Mara West and Transmara East Districts. The constituency was established for the 1997 elections and it has 22 wards, all electing councilors for the Trans Mara County Council. It has 70,294 registered voters in the 22 elective wards; namely: Kapsasian, Masurura, Mogondo, Ilkerin, Emurua Dikirr, Moyoi, Shartuka, and Emarti.
Others include Kapune, Njipship, Nkararu, Shankoe, Ololmasani, Ololchani, Kimintet, Oloerien, Angata Barrikoi, Olomismis, Poriko, Enosaen, Osinoni and Sikawa. The current MP is Mr. Gideon Sitelu Konchella who was elected on the PNU ticket after the by-elections held in 2008.
It is mainly occupied by the Maasai and the Kipsigis Community whose voter distribution is on 50-50 basis. The two communities are always in a supremacy war politically. The Maasai see the Kipsigis as Immigrant community and have always vowed never to let a Kipsigis be the area MP.
In Narok the challenge is the Mau Forest, the largest water tower in the country whose existence is under serious threat from squatters. Various attempts by several agencies in the district have been made to contain the conflict situation but only little success has been achieved.
John Oballa Owaa was born on 28 August, 1958 at Ahero, Nyando District, Kenya. He was ordained a priest of Arch-Diocese, Kenya on 28 August, 1986 on his 28th birthday.
He studied in Kenya at St. Augustine Senior Seminary, Mabanga from 1980 to 1982 and St. Thomas Aquinas National Major Seminary, Nairobi from 1982 to 1986.
After his ordination he worked at St. Theresa’s Kibuye Cathedral and Barkorwa Catholic Church. From 1998 to 2010 he was appointed Parish Priest of Ojolla upon his return to Kenya, from Rome where he studied and obtained a Licentiate and PhD in Canon Law at the Pontifical Urban University. In Rome he also worked as an official of the Pontifical Council for Health Pastoral Care, from 1995 to 1997.
From 1999 to 2001 he also served as the Secretary and Director of Finance of the Archdiocese of Kisumu. In 2004 he was appointed General Vicar of the Archdiocese of Kisumu. In January 2010 he was appointed Rector of St. Thomas National Aquinas.
In January 2012 Pope Benedict XVI has appointed entrusted to him the pastoral care of the Diocese of Ngong
Bishop Owaa has up to this date had been the Rector of St. Thomas Aquinas Major Seminary in Nairobi, Kenya. He was ordained a priest of Kisumu (Arch-Diocese), Kenya on the 28th August, 1986 by Archbishop Zacchaeus Okoth.
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