Mother and daughter who drowned in Kirinyaga river to be buried in same grave
Maureen Wangui, 29 with her daughter Precious Wairimu.
What you need to know:
- “We have resolved that the duo will be laid to rest the same day and in the same grave,” said Mr Simon Munene, father to deceased Maureen Wangui.
- On May 4, Wangui took a decision which left the family, friends and villagers reeling in shock.
- She plunged into the flooding Nyamindi river with her sickly five-year-old baby girl, strapped to her back.
The woman and her baby who drowned in the flooding Nyamindi river will be buried on Friday at Kabiroini village in Kirinyaga County, in the same grave, according to the family.
Ms Maureen Wangui, 29, died together with her five-year-old baby Precious Wairimu when she jumped into the swollen river with the child strapped to her back.
Simon Munene, father to Wangui said family members are meeting daily to make funeral arrangements.
“We have resolved that the duo will be laid to rest the same day and in the same grave,” said Mr Munene.
Mr Munene said the family is determined to give the mother and her daughter a decent send off.
On May 4, Wangui took a decision which left the family, friends and villagers reeling in shock.
She plunged into the flooding Nyamindi river with her sickly five-year-old baby girl, strapped to her back.
Later, the body of Wangui and that of her daughter, were pulled out of the waters by police and taken to the mortuary.
The body of the child was the first one to be traced by the police and the residents. Three days later, Wangui’s body was spotted floating in water, ten kilometres away from where they drowned.
Prior to her death, Wangui went through mental depression after she was allegedly jilted by her lover and her baby fell sick. She also constantly complained of being unable to monetise her medical diploma since she had failed to secure a job.
The family recounted how Wangui went through mental suffering despite being brought up in a well-to-do family.
“She was brought up well, lacking in nothing but she had her own problems which made her live a miserable life. We tried to help her overcome them but finally she took a direction that left us badly shaken,” said Irene Micere, mother to Wangui.
The family remembers Wangui becoming pregnant in 2019 while pursuing a diploma course in college. She was impregnated by a man who promised to marry her after completing her medical course.
“When my daughter gave birth, her lover visited her regularly and even bought clothes for the baby together with his parents,” said Ms Micere.
Determined to excel in life, Wangui continued with her education to graduation while her mother took care of her baby.
Later she returned home and continued looking after the baby but sadly, the child was struck by meningitis, which left her paralysed.
The baby was more often in that out of the hospital, making it hard for Wangui to concentrate in looking for employment.
This left Wangui disturbed and depressed. Her condition worsened when she learnt that her lover had rejected her.
“When my daughter was informed that the man of her heart had married another woman she became very bitter. She felt cheated and betrayed and her condition deteriorated,” Micere explained.
Sometimes she would scream and refuse to eat anything without provocation.
This worried the parents who took her to Embu referral hospital for medical check up and counselling. But that did not change her much as she continued behaving in a weird way and refused to swallow medicine prescribed by medics.
“She told us that she is not mad and would not take drugs prescribed by a psychiatrist,” said Micere.
“Sometimes she would be abnormally reticent, refuse to talk to us and threaten to leave home for good,” added Micere.
Afterwards she started exhibiting suicidal behaviour, forcing her parents to keep a close eye on her.
“At one time after, supper, our daughter became violent, wanting to leave home at night together with her baby. I snatched the baby from her and forbade her plans. After my husband talked to her down, she agreed to stay at home,” said Ms Micere.
Little did they suspect that fed up with life, Wangui secretly plotted how to eliminate herself and the baby since she stayed with her parents in Embu where they work.
She prevailed upon her father to give her a portion of their coffee farm so that she could fend for her child and become self-reliant.
On Tuesday last week, Wangui reported that she would be visiting her elderly grandparents - Fridah Njoki, 80 and Ngobo Kuruma, 90, at Kabiro-ini in Gichugu. She left in the company of her father. On arrival, the father showed Wangui her portion of the coffee farm and she even planted trees to mark the boundary.
Later her father returned to Embu, leaving Wangui with the grandparents.
A few days later, Wangui committed suicide and murder the same day, sending shockwaves across the village.
That Saturday Wangui went to the swollen Nyamindi River without telling anyone, jumped into the waters and drowned together with her daughter.
She was washing clothes outside, but must have sneaked out of the grandparents’ compound unnoticed and made for the nearby river for her watery grave.
It is said that not all best-laid plans go unnoticed because, a watchman at the nearby coffee factory witnessed Wangui’s final jump and alerted the authorities.
