• The youths said if they were denied a visa, the church had no other alternative but to give them back their money.
• It turned out that some applicants got their money back while others are yet to be refunded even after efforts to seek Nyakina to refund their money.
Image: MAGATI OBEBO
A senior Seventh Day Adventist church cleric in Kisii is on the spot over a fresh scandal involving a USA youth tour which flopped.
Dozens of youth who failed to get visas to travel out to the Oshkosh Youth Conference said they had been contacting the pastor, Earnest Nyakina, who is the youth ministry director over their money in vain.
They have since written to South Kenya Conference Head Dr. Julius Bichanga urging his intervention in the matter.
In a letter also copied to the Executive Director East Kenya Union, the youth said they paid a combined Sh3.4 million as registration and visa fees for the Camporee in which only ten of the applicants and the pastor managed to attend in May.
At least 170 youth said they were affected by the scam adding that they paid Sh19,500 with others paying more.
In the letter signed by Mark Ombaye, Solace Kerubo, Damaris Obiri, Yunia Kirioba, and Frank Machani, the youths said they read mischief in the failure by the cleric to pay back their money.
"Our main concern is that the pastor has been avoiding us and has failed to give us proper information concerning our request for the refund," said part of the letter seen by the Star.
The youths said if they were denied a visa, the church had no other alternative but to give them back their money.
It turned out that some applicants got their money back while others are yet to be refunded even after efforts to seek Nyakina to refund their money.
"After scrutinising our contributions we have realised that we may have been conned because others paid more than required yet there had been no efforts to date by the director to tell us of the anomaly," the group said.
The official amount required was $195 dollars which translate to about Sh19,500 but others paid Sh22,000 and Sh25,000 sparking fury among the applicants.
“We were also made to spend more on other things and at some point, we were asked to fundraise to meet the pastor's personal expenses," the group said in the letter copied to the Executive Director Seventh Day Adventist Church, East Kenya Union.
The youth further claim they were threatened to be locked out of the interviews by the pastor if they failed to fundraise for him.
"This is evident from the WhatsApp communication group created for the purpose of the Camporee," the group said in the letter`.
The group also accuses the cleric of abandoning them after they failed to secure their visas at the Embassy.
By Monday, the youths told the Star they are yet to get any response from the church leadership two weeks since they wrote the letter demanding a refund.
"We were told the leaders had been away and we hope to get a favourable response as soon as he gets back," Ombaye said.
Speaking to the Star on phone, South Kenya regional head Dr Bichanga said the money the youth paid went to the General Conference.
"Such seminars are a domain of the World Church Head Office and the region office acts as a facilitator. If they are agitating for a refund it is good they know who was the official organiser and what happens when one fails to secure the necessary travel documents," said Bichanga by phone.
He said the church leadership has nothing to hide in regards to the matter.
" This issue is as clear as mercury, nothing fishy," he added saying he will go through the youths' petition before he meets them.
"I will go through it as soon as I reach the office because actually am on my way back from the airport."