Dailies perpetuate Fools' Day spirit in Kenya.

Byline: Tom Osanjo, PANA Correspondent

Nairobi, Kenya (PANA) - Kenyan newspapers on Monday kept alive the spirit of April Fools' Day with funny tales ranging from a Kenyan archbishop allegedly being tipped to be the next Pope to a multi-million dollar oil find in the East African nation.

In a front page story, The People Daily soared local Catholics spirits with a story to the effect that Vatican authorities were touting the Nairobi's Archbishop Ndingi Mwana a Nzeki to replace the ailing 82-year old Pope John Paul II.

Quoting unnamed church sources the paper claimed that Ndingi was in good stead to replace the pope because the church wanted a black- preferably an African to occupy the seat otherwise known as the Vicar of Christ.

"If elected, Ndingi would be the first black pope in modern times although the church's tradition holds that Gelasius I who served as the pope between 492 to 496 AD was also black, the paper said.

However, Ndingi's candidacy was said to be facing stiff competition from other well known Catholic cardinals, especially Francis Cardinal Arinze from Nigeria, who is said to be close to the Polish Pontiff.

In yet another leg puller, the Daily Nation claimed that Kenya had finally struck oil estimated to be worth millions of dollars.