Kakamega family pleading for help to trace their son who went missing in 2007

KENYA: In 2007, Enos Saidi left his home in Shimalabandu village, Kakamega County to search for employment in Nairobi.

Enos had lived in Nairobi for many years, having gone there soon after his form four examinations, and worked as a casual labourer.

His mother Anim Saidi, 74, finds it especially hard to come to terms with her son’s disappearance and believes that she will see him again.

“Enos came to visit in December 2006 and we had a lovely time before he left for Nairobi in January of 2007. He promised to come back with a fortune and help us end this misery of poverty and he was also planning on using some of his savings to pursue an education since he had gone to school up to form four,” Anim said.

She says it is completely unlike him to stay away without any communication, saying he kept very close contact with his family.

“Before the 2007/2008 post-election violence, I had gone for a funeral in Eldoret when my son sent his friend to collect his certificates allegedly to enable him get a better paying job in the city.

The people who were at home gave out the documents thinking they would help him succeed but we are yet to know what happened,” she said.

According to his brother, Mashuru Saidi, the last they heard is that Enos’ house was found open, his beddings burned and his national identification card left in the house.

“It is now almost ten years since my brother left home. No one has heard from him since then and we do not know if he is okay or dead.

“I am worried he may have joined outlawed groups and I am asking the Government to intervene and help us trace him. Even if he is dead, it is better to know as this will give us peace of mind,” he said.

His mother describes Enos, who would now be 45 as friendly, family oriented, passionate about rugby and with a dream to become an engineer.

Mother to Enos Saidi displays her frustrations at her Shimalabandu estate in Kakamega. Her son Saidi left home in 2007 and since then he has not shown up. PHOTO: Chrispen Sechere.

“No matter what challenges Enos is going through, let him just come home. All we want is to know where he is so we can have peace of mind. We love him,” the distressed mother says.

She is now calling on the public to help the family trace their missing kin. “There must be somebody who knows what happened to him. As a mother I know my son is alive, it is just a feeling that I have. I cannot explain it but as a mother, you just know it,” she said.

Anim says she has been going for prayers and all pastors have told her that he is still alive.

“I have been forced to believe what men of God tell me. The only challenge is I do not know where he is. Age is catching up with me, I need him to come back and take care of me, he left when I did not have a cell phone, I have since purchased one just for him to call me and inform me he is alive,” she said.

Anyone with information on Enos’ whereabouts should contact us on: [email protected]