Wamuzi News Ke
Nairobi, Kenya – A wave of surprise has swept the nation after it was revealed that National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula will personally represent Kenya at the highly anticipated and globally significant funeral of Pope Francis, scheduled for Saturday, April 26, at the historic St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican.
In a moment that stunned many, Wetang’ula disclosed while leading a group of lawmakers in solemn tributes at the Apostolic Nunciature in Nairobi that President William Ruto handpicked him for this unprecedented honor. Wetang’ula is set to depart the country tonight, stepping onto the world stage alongside a rare assembly of the planet’s most powerful leaders.
In an extraordinary twist, United States President Donald Trump, French President Emmanuel Macron, Prince William, and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer are all expected to attend. Adding to the lineup are UN Secretary-General António Guterres, Argentine President Javier Milei (from the Pope’s homeland), and King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands making this one of the most elite gatherings of global leaders in recent history.
Pope Francis whose bold stances for the voiceless shook political corridors across the world passed away on Easter Monday, April 21, at the age of 88 after battling double pneumonia for over a month. The Vatican later unveiled his spiritual testament, penned back in 2022, where he requested a humble grave simply marked “Franciscus.”
What makes this moment even more historic is that the funeral signals the end of an era. In a radical break from centuries-old tradition, the late Pontiff abolished the iconic triple coffin burial, opting instead for a streamlined and modest ceremony. Gone is the ceremonial layering of cypress, zinc, and oak coffins the last vestiges of Vatican pomp stripped away at Francis’s behest.
Saturday’s service will mark the crescendo of a week-long global mourning period known as “Novemdiales” during which countless faithful have flooded into Vatican City to pay tribute. His body, clothed in symbolic red and white vestments, has drawn pilgrims from across continents for daily Masses.
As Wetang’ula prepares to take his place among world dignitaries at this once-in-a-lifetime event, Kenyans are left in awe and perhaps a bit shaken by the magnitude of both the moment and the message: the passing of a Pope who defied the powerful, championed the powerless, and chose simplicity over splendor until the very end.
