Isaac Muthee narrates how his wife abandoned him with 4 children over Ksh.30K bride price

Isaac Muthee is a single father of four; how his cookie crumbled is that his wife left him after he failed to pay the requested Ksh.30,000 bride price. He was hence forced to step up and start taking care of the children on his own as a single father.

“My wife’s parents demanded that I pay the bride price and I understand it is within our customary laws to do that, but I did not have the money. We were struggling financially and we could barely feed our children, I asked for more time to make proper arrangement,” he said.

Speaking on Citizen TV’s Shajara show on Friday, Muthee shared how his then in-laws forced his wife out of their home and left him with the children. He tried reconciling with the family, but all his efforts bore no fruits.

He narrated that he lacks support from his own family as well having been born an only child. His mother died while he was still young, and his relatives did not want to keep him; a neighbour finally took him in and travelled with him to Murang’a, and that was how he lost any contact whatsoever with his roots.

“My wife’s parents forced her to abandon her children and she went back to her parent’s house, just because I could not deliver the Ksh.30,000 dowry payment on request. This was devastating for me and especially our children, because they were separated at a very tender age,” he said.

“My daughter lives with a female friend who took her in after witnessing how they suffered while my sons stay with me. Although it was difficult for me to hand over my daughter, I knew I could not protect her from the surrounding dangers while I worked.”

As a cobbler, he noted that he makes about Ksh.250 on a good day, and that is what he uses to put food on the table since his wife has never bothered to reach out ever since she walked out on their family.

“The children do not know their mother, but I am sure even if they were to meet on the road, she would not identify them as her own. Her parents played a huge role in the separation because they asked her to go back home the way she left, without any children,” he recalled.

Today, Muthee relies on well-wishers to get by one day at a time, and appealed for help from any willing parties.

“I am a very good businessman; I used to sell shoes from Gikomba market. I am appealing for Kenyans to help me secure a job or a business, this will go a long way in helping me secure a better future for my children,” he said.