Meru — A woman allegedly set fire to his husband’s house in Kibole village, Tigania, after he reportedly refused to give her Ksh 200.
The alleged arsonist had asked for the Ksh 200 salon money so she could add to her savings and use the balance to buy clothes for her children in Muthara.
Her husband claims he informed her that he only had Ksh 200 and that it would be preferable if he gave her Ksh 100, but she claimed it wasn’t enough.”
“Before she left, I asked her to boil warm water for me to bathe. She asked me not to stay for too long at work.”
“She had left by the time I got home at 3 p.m. She later returned home around 6 p.m., which I believe was the time she committed arson after buying petrol. We have two kids, and she had sent one of them to live with her grandmother.”
“She asked the other child we were living with to go to her grandmother’s and visit the other sibling before packing clothes for her. We had been separated for seven years, and I had been left with the children. I went to Karatina in search of work with children.”
“I purchased household items worth over half a million Shillings and brought them back to my village. I lost 30 chickens and three houses. The only one that remained was a rabbit house.”
According to her husband, he only knew one of her wife’s names.
“I’m currently struggling to make ends meet through tea farming. I was afraid of remarrying and having my children mistreated by another woman after we separated. Before he died, my father told me that if you split up with a woman for a few years and then reunite, she can either kill you or destroy your life.”
“My father’s words were true because she burned down my house. The house I struggled to build with my meager earnings. I’m pleading with well-wishers to assist me in any way they can.”
A resident urged the young men to take care of themselves if turns out they are marrying women who are likely to commit arson.
“The house was a well-constructed wooden structure. The only thing left was to replace it with stones. One source of concern for the owner is the loss of an expensive music system and two television sets.”
According to a relative, the tea crop was their source of income. She appealed to well-wishers to assist her brother.
“After a seven-year separation and later a reunion, they began arguing again on July 30th, 2021. I’ve been living with their older child for a long time because his mother rejected him. When the house caught fire, the flames spread to the tea crop.”
Kibole area Manager, Josephat, said that according to reports, the alleged arsonist escaped with a water storage tank and a child.
“The search for her is still ongoing, and she has yet to be found. The residents were taken aback by the incident because arson is uncommon in Tigania.”
“In the constitution, women are given a lot of power. They have begun to turn on their husbands, and I urge the government to limit their powers because they have begun to burn down homes and beat their husbands.”
A resident, Mwiti, said that another woman was also accused of torching a house in a nearby village.
“When I conducted my own research, I discovered that the child stated that her mother packed her clothes and went to her mother,” said Mwiti.
According to a resident, the chicken house had already burned down by the time he arrived on the scene.
“The house is located at the bottom of the hill. As I approached the house, I noticed flames in the air. When I arrived on the scene, I saw a member of the community attempting to extinguish the fire so that it did not reach the tea crop.”
“While we were attempting to extinguish the fire, the owner of the house arrived and stated that he had learned of the incident after being called. He claimed that he suspected the wife started the fire out of rage.”
“He was accompanied by approximately 30 of his bodaboda riding friends. We advised them not to keep him on the scene for too long and urged them to return him to their location. The house had only recently been constructed.”
“I urge the community to come out in large numbers to assist the victim. It appears that a demon has infiltrated the women’s minds. It is not a good idea to consider burning down a house. It is preferable to think of something else rather than commit arson.”
“A house is very important because it houses people for the rest of their lives, and I implore the church to intervene and pray for these demonic-minded women.”
Kibole urged the members of the community to find out the victim’s whereabouts as he may be contemplating suicide as a result of the losses he’s suffered.
“We will spread the word so that if the wife is found anywhere in the village, he can be apprehended, detained, and charged in a court of law.”
“You discover that the constitution has greatly protected women, and a man cannot raise his hand against a woman for fear of being arrested. It has led to women taking advantage of the situation.”
According to the alleged arsonist sister-in-law, her arrowroots and bananas were razed down. She said she would soon be struggling to make ends meet without a source of income.
If the wife is apprehended, the husband has asked the government to bring her to him.
“I’ve given out my phone number so that I can be reached. I’d never want to be reunited with her again. If it happens, maybe if I’m no longer alive. I had given her the children earlier, and she had been unable to care for them.”
He said except for the clothes he wore, he was left with nothing after the house was burned down and wondered what his kids would use to cover themselves up at night.
