Nairobi gubernatorial aspirant Esther Passaris has condemned violence against women and children in Mumias. This comes after security forces launched an operation to recover stolen guns and bullets. She said Kenyans should stand together to eradicate gender violence in the country, giving an example of Mwende who was attacked by her husband and had both her hands cut off.
However, Roselyne Mikabane representative of Healthcare Foundation said current parenting skills should be questioned, adding that most of the parents have vacated their responsibility and children are depending on the internet more and more. “We may blame others, but as parents should be the first one to educate our children and enlighten them through our experience“. She said Nairobi County government has put in place strategies to help the gender violence victims.
Beatrice Achieng, one of the victims, said in 2014, her 12-year-old daughter was assaulted by close family friends for a period of seven months who used to give her Kshs 20. She reported the case to Parklands police station but he was released the following day due to lack of evidence. Passaris said cases like these should be handled well, and the ones responsible should be prosecuted accordingly. She added that gender violence should be tackled in time be before it becomes a threat to the society.
