Why The Muslim Cleric, Sheikh Abdullah Faisal is Persona-non-grata in Kenya

A supposedly Islamic Cleric, Sheikh Abdullah- Faisal entered Kenya under mysterious circumstances but was arrested by Kenya’s Anti Terrorism Police Unit on New years Day. According to a Kenyan Newspaper the Daily Nation, Sheikh Faisal entered Kenya through a Kenyan border with Tanzania. The minister in charge, Mr Kajwang, stated that the sheikh “took advantage of the situation at Lunga Lunga border to enter the country. He deliberately entered by road at a border point not linked to our computer system”. Thus the border personnel could not tell could that the Sheikh was under international watch for terrorism.

When the government announced that it had arrested him and was deporting him, at first Kenyan Muslims community was up in arms because they saw it as victimization because of his faith. However the minster in charge of immigration emphatically stated that the cleric was not being deported because he was a Muslim but “We are deporting him because of his terrorist history and the fact that he is on the international watch-list”. It should be noted that the sheikh’s passport shows that he had been denied entry in Kenya before and this is perhaps why he chose to use the road.

Kenya has about between 8-10% of its population who are Muslims. About 75-80% subscribe to the Christian faith.  Muslims like any other faith are allowed to practice their faith without discrimination and in fact the country gives one public holiday, for the Idd celebration in recognition of the faith. There are few Khadhi’s court which basically will cater for issues if civil nature pertaining to Muslims. However anyone who chooses to live in Kenya understands that Kenyan is really unofficially a Christian based nation and they need to deal with that.  

Kenya is known to be a peace loving nation and has been one of the stable African countries in modern days. It has had its share of civil unrest but this never last long because perhaps Kenyans value for peace outweighs the differences that may arise. In 1998 Kenyans were shocked when the American Embassy in the city of Nairobi was bombed. This was the first time in her short History as an independent nation that Kenyans had experienced anything like this.

Most Kenyans died because of ignorance. Even the military had no emergency preparedness and were it not for the Israel personel who flew from Israel to help it would have been worse.  This off course has changed because the innocence was destroyed and Kenyans realized they were being drawn in a war that was not theirs and they needed to be alert. Although the attack was on American Embassy it is Kenyans who suffered. Of the 250 deaths only 5 were Americans, not forgetting the injured and businesses destroyed.