A mother's pain: My 16-month-old son died a painful death; I need answers
Ms Doreen Nyaboke Ogega whose baby was knocked and killed by a vehicle at Mercy Njeri area within Rongai Sub-County on February 3, 2023.
February 3 started as a normal day for Doreen Nyaboke Ogega; it ended horribly.
Nyaboke, a casual labourer, left her Mercy Njeri home, in Rongai sub-county, for work in the neighbourhood.
However, her Friday routine was rudely interrupted by cries of distress from neighbours; her 16-month-old son had been knocked down by a speeding vehicle on a road on the estate.
According to Nyaboke, she left home at 8am and proceeded to a nearby homestead where she had been asked to work.
The property owner called her on Thursday evening and asked if she could go and wash clothes at a fee.
“A neighbour had reached out to me and promised me some work. When tragedy struck, l was washing clothes at my neighbour’s home. I depend on casual jobs to fend for my family,” Nyaboke tells the Nation.
Small child
She had left her child, Charles Maubi, at her neighbour’s place. She asked the woman, who also has a small child, to look after the two children who were playing outside the gate, promising to come back soon.
On reaching the house where she was to work, the mother of three says she was told there was no detergent and that she should get some from a nearby shop.
“I fetched the detergent and embarked on washing clothes. I had washed about two clothes when I heard screams emanating from the nearby road. When I enquired, l was told my son had been hit by a speeding vehicle,” she recalls.
She ran to the scene of the accident and found a huge crowd gathered near a Nissan van. On the side of the road lay the body of her son covered with a leso. The little boy had died on the spot.
“I was shocked and l could not move my feet. I usually go with my child whenever I get some work to do, but I sometimes leave him with my neighbour’s child with whom they play as I do my chores. There l was, staring blankly, not knowing what to do. I was devastated,” recounts Nyaboke.
The boy’s uncle, who is yet to come to terms with the death, tells Nation he has lived with the young family since Maubi was born because he supports them.
On the day of the accident, he had left for work, only to be told by his friend, a boda boda rider, that his nephew had been knocked down by a vehicle.
Good health
Upon rushing to the scene, he found police officers surrounding the vehicle and the body was immediately moved to the mortuary.
“It’s painful to lose a young soul you left home in the morning while in good health. He was always jovial and brought joy to the family, we want justice for baby Maubi,” his uncle says.
“Let the matter be taken to court. We just want justice over his death.”
An autopsy conducted on Tuesday at the Nakuru Level Five mortuary by Government Pathologist Titus Ngulungu revealed the boy died of a severe head injury.
Dr Ngulungu noted that the baby suffered head and skull contusion due to blunt force and being run over by the vehicle.
Baby Maubi will be buried on Friday at his parents’ home in Kisii County.
The family is demanding justice for the boy.
Nakuru County Police Commander Peter Mwanzo says investigations have begun to establish circumstances surrounding the accident.
“We have launched investigations into the accident. After the conclusion of our investigations we will understand what happened,” says Mwanzo.
