Dictatorship, nepotism, create havoc in the Anglican Church

It has been established that some top dignitaries within the Anglican Church in Tanzania are the main source of conflict within the church establishment.

One follower from Mbinga, who spoke on conditions of strict anonymity, said that the top leadership cannot escape blame concerning the whole saga.

He said that apart from nepotism, another source of conflict is the fact that some clerics have been leading an extravagant life at the expense of their followers, who contribute from their meagre resources for the sake of supporting their Church.

He said that some bishops are affluent in real estate, owning a collection of houses, passenger buses and commercial farms. He said that a good number of them emanate from other professions, but due to fat remuneration are now at the top of the Church’s hierarchy.

A similar situation once brought serious problems in Mwanza in April 2007, in the Diocese of Victoria Nyanza , where the outraged worshippers at St Nicholas’s evicted Bishop John Changae by force from the church, after a negotiated solution failed completely.

Amongst the complaints from the worshippers in Mwanza was that Bishop Changae was a grabby person who had misused the Church’s property. Moreover they complained that he was instrumental in causing divisions and hatred among its followers.

They said that since 1993 when he was elected, he never held discussions with members of the congregation in order to resolve their differences.

A similar situation is now facing worshippers in Ruvuma through difficulties caused by Bishop Maternus Kapinga, according to our sources.

According to various documents that The Express is in possession of, Bishop Kapinga has failed to resolve the differences amicably in the Ruvuma Anglican diocese.

The available document indicates that in May 2009, Prof Palamagamba Kabudi, who is the current Anglican Provincial Registrar, had advised Bishop Kapinga to find a negotiated solution to disputes in his diocese.

The documents indicate that apart from Prof Kabudi, other bishops were also surprised that throughout his ten years tenure as bishop of the Ruvuma diocese, Dr Kapinga has never been at peace with his flock, even for a single year.

Moreover, around the same time, Bishop John Mwela (Southern Highlands) and Bishop John Lupaa (Rift Valley) were also concerned with the situation, calling for their fellow clergyman to reconsider his relations with his workmates.

The Express made several attempts to reach Prof Kabudi for comment but he was unreachable throughout the day on Tuesday.

Earlier in the morning of the same day the renowned law lecturer had promised to call back, which promise he did not honour, in the same style as the whole of the Anglican top leadership.

One layman from Songea, who called The Express after reading the two past issues coverage on the matter, said that there are many lessons to learn from the misdemeanors of Bishop Kapinga.

The caller, who preferred anonymity, said that Bishop Kapinga was never groomed to become a clergyman. “I believe it would have been better for him to remain in academia, he does not have the graces of reverence”, commented the caller.

He added that Bishop Kapinga started out as a Catholic where he pursued seminary studies as far as the upper level, but quit and joined the Anglican Church to become one of its bishops, in a manner that casts doubt on the seriousness of the Church establishment about how they pick their top leaders.

The caller, who also provided some documentary evidence currently withheld by The Express, said there are many indications that his election to the Ruvuma diocese was more of an imposition from the top than an evolutionary process, as is required by the Church constitution.

The caller added that retired Archbishop Donald L. Mtetemela had trusted that Dr Kapinga, then lecturer at the University and a Matengo who hails from Mbinga, could do a good job for the Ruvuma diocese, which is not the case according to that source.

“We were jubilant after having learnt that our new bishop was one of our clansmen, moreover we banked on his academic credentials, but this has turned into a severe disappointment”, he concluded.

The Express had an interview with another resident of Dar es Salaam who hails from Ruvuma, who said that Bishop Kapinga’s case should not be taken as an isolated phenomenon.

He said that this must be seen as a continuation of the conspiracy to cover up for someone whenever there are complaints. The whole church establishment has developed this sort of culture that is now threatening the life of the Church.

He mounted a sharp attack against Bishop Kapinga, in particular for what he called a complete ‘usurpation of power’ and military style of leadership.

He said that Bishop Kapinga has been disapproved of by a big number of Anglican Church faithful, to the extent that some have decided to defect to other Christian denominations.

He said that the bishop has created a state of fear within church ranks in Ruvuma diocese, by co-opting whoever will support him and getting rid of anyone who fails to tolerate what he termed ‘the dictatorial tendencies of the bishop’.

The bulky document that this paper is holding indicates that there have been many attempts to resolve the matter, even by the relevant government bodies, but these have proved futile.

The Express has also received much correspondence from within and outside the church establishment, where complainants were courageous enough to write and sign handwritten letters, regardless of severe intimidation about being excommunicated from the Church.

This paper, apart from holding many documents supporting the assertion that Bishop Kapinga has been unnecessarily defiant of his critics, is in possession too of some relevant legal documents.

This altogether indicates that the Courts have been consulted on matters that could have been resolved within the church establishment, if common sense were allowed to prevail.