It has been two years of pain for Wilfred Kamande, the 52 year-old man who chopped off his manhood in Kaharero village, Kigumo Sub County over what residents believed was depression following the death of his wife.
Ever since, he has been in bed nursing the wound, which he now says has extended to other parts of the body due to infections.
Before then, he was the main source of income for his family, a duty he can hardly perform now, making life difficult for his children.
Up to date, he still cannot explain what got over him to commit such an act and he sometimes believes he was bedeviled.
When the press and other local leaders visited him this week, his uncoordinated speech told it all; that he was a man reeling in deep pain and lost into thoughts.
“Sometimes the pain becomes unbearable. The internal parts of my organ have been damaged due to infection. It becomes even worse when answering to calls of nature,” he said.
Outside his shattered mud-house compound, only a few of his friends have visited to keep him company. “The society has shunned me with others calling me names,” he said.
The father of five chopped off half of his organ and when he was taken to hospital, doctors managed to fix it recommending that he attends clinics to heal fully.
But unfortunately, his financial status could not allow him to travel several kilometers to Murang’a frequently for medication.
After attending clinic in the first few months, he drained the resources that he had, and began nursing the wound at his home.
“Up to date, I fail to understand what had bedeviled me to the extent of getting a knife to cut off my genitals. I have never thought of doing such an act in my entire life,” he said.
His son Peter Mwangi says the death of their mother and sister that year tormented their father, making him feel that the family had been bedeviled.
“Our sister left behind a child and the responsibility that had been left to my father was heavy given that he was only a casual labourer,” he explains.
“Ever since, our family has gone through tough financial times to keep afloat and also provide medication to our father. Most of those we had as friends deserted us. We call for financial assistance to help our father lead a normal life,” said Mwangi.
Kamande calls on well-wishers to help him seek specialized treatment to help him recover fully.
His only prayer is that one day, his manhood would heal so he could return to normal state and begin performing manly activities.
His advice is people should resist temptations of acting out of anger and desperation.
“Some things happen too fast and if not careful, one may end up doing acts that he may regret the rest of his life. Dig deep before making judgments,” he said.
By Muoki Charles