Siaya MCA seeks to abolish wife inheritance at upcoming Piny Luo event
By Eric Juma, November 29, 2025An MCA from Siaya seeks to introduce wife inheritance as an agenda for discussion at the Piny Luo Event scheduled for December 2025, with a view to erasing it from the Luo cultures.
The MCA noted that the retrogressive culture has enhanced the spread of HIV/AIDS, hence claiming the lives of widows.
According to South East Alego MCA Scholastica Madowo, the retrogressive wife inheritance cultural practice has not only left families with new HIV infections but also wiped out stable families in Luo Nyanza.
Economically stable widows
During a media brief in Siaya town on Saturday, November 29, 2025, Madowo asked the Luos to shun the wife inheritance culture to save the lives of widows whose husbands had left them economically stable.
“Though we have a widows’ protection bill that has itemised some of the harmful cultural practices that we would like to be discarded, the idea must be tabled before elders in a gathering that brings together the Luo community for discussion,” she said.
Madowo regretted that elderly Luos would force widows in Nyanza to have sexual relations with ‘bad’ men to cleanse them.
“It’s unfortunate that the widows are forced to have sexual relations with people who care less about what they are going through. The wife’s inheritance culture has been attributed to the increased HIV/AIDS,” she added.
The enactment of the widow’s bill that was recently endorsed and approved by the Siaya assembly would be a relief to the distressed widows, for it has a mechanism that seeks to address such harmful cultural practices.
“In the coming Piny Luo event in Migori, the issue will be part of the key agenda to be tabled for discussion. For me, I would champion its removal among the Luo cultures,” she noted.
“The bill has allowed the creation of welfare committees at the grassroots level, where the widows will seek advice in justice; right now, it’s not clear who to run to, and most of them get confused, thus dropping the cases. There would also be a directorate with funding that would facilitate the widows to plan and execute activities around them.”
Adding: “Apart from sensitising men and widows on the need to stay in the society harmoniously, we will also document data of widows as per their ages and economic status.”
Rape cases
She also called for concerted efforts among the community towards addressing the elderly rape menace that is taking a toll in Siaya.
She cited that her ward is notorious, and she was working on two cases where the youth took advantage of the elderly women and violated their rights, knowing very well that they couldn’t raise an alarm.
“Some of the incidents go unreported because widows feel it’s shameful to discuss those issues. It calls for sitting together as a community to delve into it expansively so as to protect the elderly,” Madowo stated.
Madowo noted that the elderly women whose rights are violated are aware that systems that would see them get justice exist, but are worried about the complexity and tediousness.
“The victims are required to acquire the P3 forms and assurance from a doctor who has certified that she was raped that would testify in the case,” Madowo said, adding that the processes are beyond the elderly, for it needs money to facilitate it.
She called for the adjustments of the systems so as to make it simpler for the victims of rape.