Kwale missing girls: Mothers' agony for daughters
Rose Mapenzi (left) and Virginia Wambui (right) in a photo provided by their family. The two girls are said to have run away from school last Friday.
A week after their daughters, who were close friends, disappeared from a school in Kwale County, Ann Wangeci and Judith Lihema remain devastated mothers.
Wangeci's daughter Virginia Wambui and Lihema's Rose Mapenzi are believed to have escaped from Dori Girls Secondary School in Msambweni last Friday and are still unaccounted for.
On Tuesday, the Nation learnt that the two girls and another were involved in a disciplinary matter that resulted in them being caned.
Their names were also announced during a routine parade after they were found with a love letter.
According to Wangeci, who lives in Diani, the headmistress asked her to report to the school last Friday because her daughter was missing.
"I asked her what the problem was and she said that after the Friday assembly, they discovered that my daughter was not in class. We reported it to the police and she has not been found yet. We don't know where she is today," said Wangeci.
In Likoni, Lihema is equally concerned about the whereabouts of her 15-year-old daughter, Rose Mapenzi.
She explained that efforts to call other relatives to find out if her daughter could have escaped to their homes were futile as no one knew where she could be.
"The school had sent other pupils home on Thursday after opening for school fees, but I had paid the fees so mine was not sent away. Maybe she escaped with the others," said Lihema.
She said the two Form Two girls and another student were punished after they were found with love letters.
"After the incident, my daughter, who was suspended and hurt, told me she did not want to go back to that school. But I told her that we had no choice and that she should stay just for this last term while we find another school," she said.
The two families, along with the school, have reported the incident to the Msambweni police station, and are hoping that social media, where they have shared photos of the girls in groups, will help find them.
Msambweni police chief Francis Gachoki said the school's headmistress, Prisca Luvisia, had reported that the two girls had escaped from the school over the fence on Thursday night.
"We have sent a signal to all stations to search for the girls who have been missing since last week and we are hopeful that they will be found," he said.
Ms Luvisia confirmed that the girls were missing, but declined to give further information on the case.
