Peter Oyuk, an 84-year-old Kenyan man, is disappointed after returning home to discover that the two wives he abandoned 47 years ago have remarried.
According to The Standard, the octogenarian walked out of his Makale village in Malava, Kakamega county, when he was 37 years old, in 1974.
He told his people that he was leaving for greener pastures because he needed to care for two wives and five children, but he didn’t say where he was going or when he expected to return.
Oyuka visited Kakamega in 1983, 1992, and 1996, but despite being close to the family, he never visited his home. After many years of waiting, his wives moved on and remarried.
On September 21, Oyuka returned to his village, where only a few people recognized him.
One of his daughters-in-law was said to have nearly screamed in fear that he was a stranger who had broken into the compound.
Before the prodigal son was allowed back into the house, a white goat was sacrificed to appease the ancestors in accordance with Luhyia customs.
The returnee was informed that the wives he left behind had long remarried and had moved on from their memories of him.
After returning home, Oyuka told journalists that while he was grateful that his family had accepted him back, he was disappointed that his wives had not waited for him.
“I wish my wives could be here today to greet me,” he said.
“I wish my two wives the best of luck in their marriages.” But I’d like them to know that I’m still alive and that they should make time to come see me, he added.
While he was away from home, he was said to have ended up in neighbouring Tanzania, where he spent 13 years.
He not only met and fell in love with a Tanzanian woman, but they also had a child.
Communication between the two fell apart when his stay in the country ended and he returned to Kenya.
“My Tanzanian lover has stopped communicating with me and has refused to let me meet our son,” he revealed.
Oyuka’s return to the home he abandoned was sparked by a Facebook post in which a Good Samaritan shared information about the elderly man and requested leads to his family.
As luck would have it, his 53-year-old son Aggrey Osanji, whom he abandoned at aged six, saw the post and initiated contact, after which he was brought back home.
Oyuka also revealed that his health has been failing and the money he once made from onion farming has been spent on medication, that is why he was desperate to find his way back home.
As luck would have it, his 53-year-old son Aggrey Osanji, whom he abandoned when he was six, saw the post and initiated contact, leading to his return home.
Oyuka also revealed that his health had deteriorated and that the money he had earned from onion farming had been spent on medication, which was why he was desperate to return home.
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