MCA aspirant's 3 children go missing in Uasin Gishu

From left: Clifford Nyambane, six, Dan Nyamweya, five, and Glen Ongagi, three. Two of the children have been found dead in Kitale. FILE PHOTO | JARED NYATAYA | NATION MEDIA GROUP.

Three children belonging to a candidate for MCA in Uasin Gishu County have gone missing for the fourth day running.

The three boys — Clifford Nyambane, six, Dan Nyamweya, five, and Glen Ongagi, three — went to Eldovil SDA Church in the company of their cousin on Saturday but failed to return.

DISTRAUGHT

Their father James Ratemo, a Kanu candidate for Kapsoya ward, was in agony on Wednesday after efforts to find them failed to bear fruit.

Their mother, with teary eyes, said the children had gone ahead of her to church but she did not find them when she arrived a few minutes later.

“I prepared very early for church as is the norm on Saturday,” she said.

“However, when I reached church, which is just 500 metres away, I could not find them. I assumed that they had gone to play with their friends but I was alarmed when they failed to come back home.”

PUPILS

She appealed for help to help find her children.

“These children are my only hope. Please, anybody with information, assist me to find my children,” she said.

An uncle of the children, who was last seen with them, has denied any knowledge of their whereabouts.

He has since been questioned at the Naiberi and Central police stations.

Clifford is a Standard One pupil at Highland Grace Academy while Dan is in Middle Class at Shalom Academy. The youngest, Glen, is yet to go to school.

Mr Ratemo said they had searched for the boys everywhere, including in children's homes and relatives’ houses, but to no avail.

UNCLEAR

“I cannot rule out that the children’s disappearance is related to politics, but I cannot speculate. Let police do their own investigations,” he said.

He said he had not had any differences with his rivals or his neighbours.

"We call on well-wishers to assist us to find our children,” he added.

Cases of children disappearing in unclear circumstances in the North Rift have been on the rise recently.

Uasin Gishu County Commissioner Abdi Hassan said investigations into the latest disappearances had begun.

He called on parents in the region to keep an eye on their children.

“Parents should also vet people who take care of their children when they have gone to work,” he said.