A family of three from Gatina village in Gatundu North has known nothing in life but desolation, abject poverty and endless struggles that continue to weaken them.
They spend most of the day in the darkly, unfriendly indoors of a 3-bedroom shanty house that hardly meets their shelter needs.
The three, two brothers and an ageing sister have been struck by poverty that turned their lives upside down making them live a seemingly nonstandard life.
One of the rooms in the collapsing house is used by the ageing woman, another is used as a kitchen and table room while the other accommodates the two brothers as a bedroom.
The three family members sleep on regrettably torn beddings besides which old, torn and worn-out clothes and shoes are kept.
Two among them Agnes Wanjiru, 62, and Simon Karanja, 46, are intellectually incapacitated while the seemingly mentally abled man – Peter Mbitu, 49, is an all-time drunkard.
Despite his drunkenness, Mbitu is the breadwinner for the other two who on special occasions sneak out of their dark house for a brief encounter with the sun and fresh air.
To feed his kin, Mbitu spends his days fetching water for villagers at a small pay, money he also uses to quench his thirst.
According to Lydia Wangari, a villager who has been seeking help for the desolate family, their deficiency, coupled with a few untraceable family issues has infamously made the household notable in the entire village.
Speaking today, Wangari revealed that the family members have been skipping meals.
Their situation, she said, has been worsened by jigger infestation that continues to weaken them.
“These family members do not know peace. They live by the grace of God and it’s through a friend I got to know about their state. They not only need shelter, clothing but also food to eat as they have nothing as you have seen,” Wangari said.
Due to their situation, the family members could not even express themselves but villagers who spoke to K24 Digital pleaded for help from well-wishers to give the three a decent life.
