AFTER 17 YEARS IN COLD FINALLY A GRANNY @93 LAID TO REST AT HIS HOME
Written by RadioVuna on April 26, 2021
It was on 31 August, 2004 at the age of 93 that Ester Nzakwa Kitivo died but her journey to rest was halted due to protracted legal tussles over a land dispute. The family in Mbuani Village, Machakos County has finally buried the body of its beloved one that has been lying in mortuary for 17 years now.
Her body that has been laying at Machakos funeral home since her death has now been laid to rest on Saturday at her son’s home pending the determination of the ongoing land disputes.
The burial ceremony that lasted slightly more than an hour was with greater tensions even thought there was a greater presence of police officers providing security. One of the grandchildren, John Oganda says that their late granny took care of him other siblings and their mum in the early 1980s.”She used to serve me a big cup of tea and huge viazi tamu which was very sweet.”
Says another that is now a primary teacher that he took care of them just after their last born breastfeed the last from their deceased mum. Her eldest son Kitivo said he was a disciplinarian who always made sure her children went and acquired formal education. He ended by urging the members of the family to maintain peace for their mum has finally rested after a decade of urgonizing, for her she was always a hard working woman that is behind their all success.
On March 28, 2014, Justice Beatrice Thuranira Jaden declined to allow the body to be buried at her matrimonial home.She said the court could not rely on traditional customs as testimony to decide where Nzakwa’s body would be interred. An attempt to bury Nzakwa in 2004 flopped when one of her stepsons claimed to have consent from the Land Control Board. The consent said the home belonged to him. He obtained a permanent injunction from a magistrate in Machakos.
The family, however, insisted that Nzakwa could only be buried at her home. According to Kamba customs, the first wife is usually buried next to her husband at their matrimonial home.
