“Marriage is not an achievement,” Dennis Itumbi says while defending his single status
By Valerian Khakayi, November 19, 2025Head of Presidential Special Projects and the Creative Economy Dennis Itumbi has opened up about why he has not yet married, saying he does not consider marriage a mandatory stage in life.
Speaking during an interview with SPM Buzz, Itumbi said he is still thinking about the institution of marriage and questioning whether it is necessary for everyone.
“I am still thinking about the institution of marriage. I have my issues about the institution of marriage that I try to convince myself of,” Itumbi said.
“I am at a level where I am deciding whether marriage is necessary for you to live because I know there are three things that are compulsory to a human being, to be born, to pay taxes and to be buried; the other things are optional.”
Views on marriage
He added that, in his view, only three things in life are compulsory apart from marriage, which he says is optional.
“I do not treat marriage as a compulsory passage of life; the answer to Dennis Itumbi’s wife is non-existence,” he added.
Itumbi revealed that he has been in relationships before, but he is still unsure about whether he should commit to marriage, adding that it is not an achievement in life.
“I do not think this marriage thing is such an issue. In my view, it is an institution that culturally we were brought up in, that at some point after you get a job, you need to get married. I am opposed to it; I do not think it is a compulsory rite of life. I think it is there to make people happy,” he stated.
“I have had some personal relations; I am only not sure about the institution and whether or not I should go in that direction. If the issue of marriage is children, I can get without marriage; if the issue is companionship, you can get companionship without marriage. I do not see one compelling reason why marriage is compulsory. Marriage is a good thing, but sio lazima. Marriage is not an achievement of life.”
Even so, Itumbi did not completely rule out getting married in the future, saying he believes that if it is God’s plan, it will happen.
“In the future, we leave it to God; they say a good wife is a gift from God, and he who gets a good wife obtains favour from the Lord. God is still packaging my gift; my hands are open, when the gift comes, I will unwrap it,” Itumbi said.
Societal pressure
Itumbi also shared how people around him often pressure him to settle down.
“Women from my village, I hosted them here, and after we talked about development and other things, one lady stood and said, ‘All those things are good, but sasa tunataka kuzaliwa so unaleeta huyu mrembo lini?'” Itumbi shared.
“In response, I told them, there is one thing that is assured: all of us will get married, and it is going to be in heaven.”
He added that his family had pushed him for years but eventually stopped, accepting his views. According to him, pressure does not only come from relatives but also from friends.
“Familia waliweka pressure wakawacha, I think they accept what I am saying is going to be the case. The pressure is everywhere, not only from my parents but even from friends,” he concluded.