Embu man walks out of dowry ceremony, cites extortion, unnecessary fines

 

On the morning of their planned ceremony, Mbogo’s girlfriend notified him that the money he had sent her family was not enough Upon arrival at his fiancé’s home, Mbogo’s entourage was slapped with several fines forcing him to boycott the ceremony

Negotiations and presentation of dowry is supposed to be a fun moment. So when two love birds from a rural outpost in Embu County agreed to have their families meet over the same a fortnight ago, only entertainment and merriment was expected.

What, however, the smitten young man, surnamed Mbogo didn’t know was that the lady’s aunts and uncles would throw in the mix spanners of all sorts, with any breach of protocol or clumsiness attracting punishment.

With Mbogo unaware of many of the traditions and the seriousness they were treated with, he made several mistakes that saw him fined heavily.

So much so that he walked out of the ceremony to express his displeasure.

An infuriated Mbogo left in a huff, vowing never to set foot in that home again because his would-be-in-laws seemed hell-bent on extorting him.

A lot of planning had reportedly gone into the ceremony, with the young lad sending his fiancée’s family about Sh40,000 to cater for food, tents, chairs and a public address system.

He had also set aside Sh60,000 to pay his bride price which is calculated based on the value of a number of cows and goats that the two families agree on.

“On the morning of the big day, Mbogo was shocked when his girlfriend called and inform him that the money he had sent was inadequate and the dowry negotiation committee had decided that he sends an extra Sh20,000 that morning,” said Kabiru, Mbogo’s relative.

Mbogo reluctantly coughed up the money and had to make several phone calls to friends for emergency soft loans as he was not prepared for the new demand.

In a fleet of hired cars and a school bus, they arrived at the fiancée’s village, hooting joyfully to announce their grand arrival.

But since there was no one to guide them, they made a detour to the wrong path and ended up into a different homestead instead of the girls’.

For this, the delegation was slapped with a Sh10,000 fine, which they paid grudgingly.

“Feeling exploited and harassed, Mbogo paid up the fine and we settled down for the ceremony. The introductions proceeded smoothly, followed by food as music rented the air,” said the relative.

Drama, however, ensued when several girls were paraded into the compound covered in lesos from head to toe and Mbogo asked to guess who his fiancée was.

He studied the girls, who were of similar height, sniffed around for his girl’s perfume but all was in vain. He pointed to the wrong women, leading to yet another fine of Sh5,000.

The girls were shepherded back to the house and covered up before being paraded once again. Just like in the first try, Mbogo picked the wrong one, leading to yet another fine, something that sparked furious protests from his delegation.

A furious Mbogo excused himself to visit the loo, only to slither out of the home in fury.

He is said to have hopped on to a passing motor bike and headed to the nearby market centre.

“Efforts to reach him proved futile as he had switched off his phone,” said Kabiru, adding that the ceremony collapsed, even as the lady’s kin begged Mbogo’s delegation to prevail upon him to return and conclude the negotiations.

“They said the fines were meant to bring comic relief to the tense ceremony. Unfortunately, it was too little too late. The marriage now hangs in the balance,” said Kabiru.