The family of a deceased form four candidate who perished in a road accident days before sitting the national examination last month, is crying for justice even as her peers started their exams on Monday.
Emma Wangari died while in the course of readying for the awaited examination, with her family demanding the prosecution of a lorry driver who ran over her alongside her sister, Ruth Wangeci and nephew, Michael Chege.
“We lost three family members in the October 8, 2018 accident along the Nyahururu-Nyeri road. The driver of the lorry that rammed into them was released after paying police bail and since then, the matter has remained a mystery to us” moaned pastor Antony Chege, father to the deceased.
Tears flowed freely when KNA visited the family at their Nyonjoro home in Ndaragwa constituency, Nyandarua County as the family recounted how the death left a void in their hearts.
“My daughter Emma was our only hope, her dream was to be a lawyer one day and move us from this timber houses to better ones. She was promising and kept us all looking forward to her examination results” said the grieving father.
“We sold our meagre treasures to see her through schooling and despite her high grades in primary school, she opted for a day school to ease us of the school fees burden”, narrated Florence Wambui the distraught mother.
“Wangeci was expecting her third child, with the postmortem revealing a 21-week-old foetus. I buried four souls in one grave because the pain was too much to bear. ”
Michael, his widow Ms Rebecca Wairimu tells us, had doubled his efforts at work to ensure his three children plus the one we are expecting had a secure future.
“Am just a house wife and do not know where to start in fending for my young family.” she sobbed, cuddling her younger daughter now three years. She called on police to ensure that justice has been done to the three departed souls.
At Ngaindeithia secondary school, Deputy Principal, Hillary Ngure said that Emma was one of their top performers.
“She was one of our best students as she was good in academics. She used to excel in almost all subjects and i can confidently say that we expected her to perform well but unfortunately she died,” said the deputy principal when KNA visited the school.
However, when contacted Nyandarua North Officer Commanding Police Division (OCPD), Timon Odingo denied claims that police were trying to bungle investigations, adding that the suspect had already been arraigned in court.
“The criminal case of causing death through careless driving is ongoing at the Nyahururu law courts and when concluded the family can ask for restitutions should the suspect be convicted”, Odingo said.
“The family can only seek for restitution by filing a civil case,” said the police boss.
By Anne Sabuni