Due to poverty and the high expense of living, parents from two households in Nyamira County fled their houses, leaving young children to fend for themselves.
One of the kids, a 14-year-old student in class 8, described how one day her mother departed and left her with her younger brother.
She said that her mother had abandoned them after her mother had abruptly departed one day and never returned after her father had passed away some years before.
The class eight student had to work odd jobs to support herself and her grade five brother.
“After our father died, my mother brought us here. She stayed for two months and then she left. She did not tell us where she was going,” she narrated
Her teacher, Zablon Onyoni, stated that the school had raised concerns over the matter but they were not able to help her because there were many similar cases.
“Sometimes she leaves school and when we inquire we are told that she went to look for jobs to buy food.
“Sometimes we teachers assist but not so much because we have so many other learners with the same problem,” Zablon stated.
The two had not cooked for days and depended on well-wishers who sometimes shared food with them.
“We don’t even have good uniforms, we sleep on the floor, and we don’t have any food. We are pleading with the government to help us,” the 14-year-old lamented.
In a separate family in the area, a 10-year-old girl was forced to take care of her 7-year-old brother after their father fled after committing a crime.
The 10-year-old narrated that shortly after their father left, their mother vanished to escape poverty and the high cost of living.
“We are begging our mother and father wherever they are to come back,” she pleaded.
Their neighbour Adna Kwamboka stated that they would spare some food to share with the children adding that they were suffering.
Nyamira Chikdren’s officer Billy Adera explained that it had become a common occurrence for parents to abandon their children in the area.
He warned against the trend, asking the residents to report any cases of abandoned children by their parents.
“The idea that a parent can leave their children uncared for is in itself a crime,” Abera warned.
