‘Your noisy prayers are chasing away our customers,’ Hotel sues Born-Again church

A congregation of people praying

A city hotel has sued a Born-Again church in Mbuya, Kampala, for allegedly holding noisy prayer sessions and sermons which have turned away their prospective customers who seek alternative accommodation in other quiet hotels.

Duomo Hotel & Apartments sued Pastor John Ssali Lulenti and his church, Jubilee Christian Life Church. The suit is in the Civil Division of the High Court in Kampala.
Pastor Lulenti was jointly sued with Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) and Nakawa Division for allegedly failing in their mandate to prevail over the church to stop the noise.

Particulars of the suit indicate that the church is an unlicensed religious institution comprised of temporary illegal structures directly adjacent to the hotel.

The hotel states that on various dates since January 2018, Pastor Lulenti and his agents, during prayer sessions and other activities, emitted noise beyond the acceptable decibels as prescribed by law.

“Reluctantly, the 1st and 2nd defendants have continued to engage in activities that cause noise pollution in the neighbourhood, which has gravely affected and inconvenienced the plaintiff’s (hotel) clients thus leading to loss of business income,” the court documents read in part.

“The plaintiff’s business has gravely suffered loss of income and profits because its resident guests find it unbearable to accommodate the noise emanating from the 2nd defendant’s premises thus opting for alternative accommodation in other hotels,” the suit further states.

The hotel management avers that despite raising several complaints, Mr Lulenti and his church continued to hold loud prayer sessions and the police’s Environmental Protection Unit summoned them but the summons were ignored.

Court documents show the church’s music equipment was one time confiscated by National Environment Management Authority (Nema), which compelled the church to sign an agreement to mitigate the excessive noise but the church did not comply with the noise standard and control measures.

The hotel management allege that the church does not possess an occupation permit or physical plan for its illegal structures.