The Children’s Department in Juja Sub County is in the process of reuniting 74 children rescued from Young Dreams Children’s Home in Juja town a month ago with their families.
The Sub County Children’s Officer (SCCO), Emmanuel Mbae said they are in talks with parents and guardians of 66 children to have them joined with their families.
He added that they were in the process of tracing families of the remaining children and soon all will be taken to their families or transferred to registered children homes.
The children were rescued from the home by police from Juja over concerns that the home was unregistered and operated under pathetic conditions.
Mbae said all the children lived in a two-roomed house that lacked a proper latrine, with 10 children sharing a bed, standards that were an abuse to their rights.
“The condition of the home is pathetic and doesn’t qualify to hold children. It lacked good sanitation, the feeding sometimes was a problem, and also the home was unregistered. Adults were staying in the same rooms with young children. How can 10 people share a bed?. It had to be closed down,” he said.
The SCCO warned directors of children homes against taking advantage of donors and well wishers funding to enrich themselves instead of using the funds to improve living conditions of those they purport to take care of.
He said no unregistered children home will be allowed to operate in the area and that they have intensified visits to all local children homes to monitor adherence and living conditions.
The Home’s Director, Pauline Wambui has since been arrested and charged in a Thika court.
She read malice in the raid at the home saying they had met all the conditions and were in the process of registering the home.
Wanbui said the children mostly aged between six and 18 and who come from Meru, Embu, Murang’a and Nyanza among others places had been transferred from another home in Kahawa West in January.
Lydia Maina, the house mother called on the government to reopen the home for the sake of the children.
She said the closure will disrupt the education cycle of the children as they will be forced to transfer to other schools.
She feared the situation might affect the performance of the five KCPE candidates as they may fail to get admissions to other schools in time.
By Muoki Charles
