• The PCEA Secretary General addressed clergy and congregants, urging them to rally together and rescue Milele Hotel from a mounting debt crisis
  • The church borrowed KSh 650 million to acquire the hotel but has since repaid KSh 900 million, with the outstanding balance reportedly standing at KSh 1.1 billion
  • An independent audit by eight experts from four organisations slashed the stated debt from KSh 1.1 billion to KSh 750 million, raising questions about the original figures

The Presbyterian Church of East Africa (PCEA) Secretary General has emotionally implored members of the church to help pay off a KSh 750 million loan and save its Milele Beach Hotel. 

In a video shared by Mutembei, it has emerged that the Milele Beach Hotel located in Bamburi,Mombasa and by extention the PCEA is facing one of its most pressing financial challenges in recent memory after a debt burden ballooned well beyond the original loan amount.

Speaking before a congregation of clergy and faithful gathered in a church auditorium on August 31, the PCEA Secretary General delivered an impassioned address calling on members to contribute towards saving the hotel, which he described as a core part of the denomination's heritage.

How the Debt Grew

According to the SG, the church originally borrowed KSh 650 million to acquire Milele Beach Hotel. Despite having since repaid approximately KSh 900 million, the outstanding debt was cited at KSh 1.1 billion, a figure the Secretary General acknowledged was alarming.

"When we were told that our debt had reached 1.1 billion, I knew we had to find a solution," he said, adding that he viewed the crisis as a spiritual problem first and a financial one second.

Concerned by the figures, church leadership commissioned an independent audit involving eight experts drawn from four organisations: PCEA itself, KCB, National Bank, and an organisation identified as ILAC. Upon completion, that review revised the debt figure down significantly to KSh 750 million, a development the Secretary General described as a dramatic drop.

He further disputed the hotel's stated valuation of KSh 1.7 billion, insisting the property was worth well above KSh 3 billion. He attributed the lower valuation to what he termed as deliberate manipulation.

A Call to Give

The Secretary General urged members to set aside disagreements that had played out on social media and focus on collective action instead. He called on individuals to contribute whatever they could, whether KSh 100 or KSh 1,000, guided by how God had blessed them.

"Those who are willing, let us save Milele," he said. "This is a Presbyterian heritage. This is our Milele."

He acknowledged that only a small number of vocal critics were causing noise, while the wider membership across presbyteries had been sending encouraging signals of support. He also stressed that allowing the hotel to be lost would bring considerable shame to the church, arguing that the consequences of inaction would far outweigh the difficulty of giving.

He did not shy away from pointing to past mismanagement, but insisted the church could not afford to remain anchored in past mistakes.

 Instead, he called for a forward-looking approach, including plans to eventually hand hotel management to professionals so that church leadership could refocus on ministry.