Fridah Warau: A father's favourite, Juja dam tragedy woman who once aspired to be televangelist, buried
The burial of Fridah Warau Kamuyu, who drowned in Titanic Dam in Kiambu County, at Njiku village in Murang'a County on February 1, 2023.
Fridah Warau Kamuyu, 23, who died on January 17 in Juja's Titanic Dam, was buried on Wednesday in an emotional sendoff at her parents’ home in Mjiku village, Murang’a County.
She died tragically with her lover Tirus Maina Kiiru, 39, when his vehicle slid into the dam. They had gone to the site that revellers have been frequenting since 2020.
Police records indicate that they died around 10pm, with the post-mortems revealing they drowned.
Armed police officers from Kamacharia police station kept watch during the well-attended burial. They had instructions from the family to ensure there was no media coverage of the burial.
Fridah was born to Mr Chris Kamuyu and Ms Grace Ruguru and had four sisters and a brother. Neighbours mourned her as a jovial, well-meaning and determined young woman, who became a born-again Christian when she was 13.
"I remember her as my classmate who, while in class seven at Kagwanja primary school, told me she aspired to one day become an international televangelist," said Alice Njoki, 24.
She said they lost touch after they did their KCPE exam in 2014.
“She went to Butere Girls High school in Western region, where she cleared in 2019. I went to a Kiambu county high school. I am now a student at Kenyatta University ... it is very sad … I'm sorry, her resting story is so different from the girl I knew who wanted to be a televangelist," said Ms Njoki.
Fridah had graduated in November last year, with a diploma in hospitality management from Uzuri Institute in Thika town.
She was baptised in the Anglican Church of Kenya in 2006, but an elder said: “Beyond that baptismal, we have no further details. We have no evidence that she was attending church ... The rest is about her and her God.”
Neighbours spoke of a girl who was her father's favourite and she always talked fondly of him.
Her elder sister, Mary Kamuyu, who works in Saudi Arabia, and could not attend the burial, had her tribute read by a friend.
“My sister, it is well ... I especially remember the way you loved chapati ... how children in our family loved you ... I will always love you as I have always done, and I will keep our covenant of conversations true to heart.”
A relative, Mr Charles Maina, welcomed people to the burial, saying: “Death has many routes to claim its victims, and our Fridah's route was as you have heard. We have accepted.”
Bishop Edward Maina, in his sermon, implored the youth to stop living “in a manner that does not depict hope and faith in life”.
He urged the youth to embrace patience and perseverance in pursuit of the good life they desire.
“Drugs, crime, destructive lifestyles, are evidence of a youth with no hope for the future. They want shortcuts to achieve good life ... But life is a process, not instant quick fixes.”
He urged parents to pray without ceasing for their children, saying "it is hard being a parent nowadays".
