Grandmother, 87, appeals for aid to bury grandson killed in dusitD2 attack

Although it was hard for 87-year-old Eunice Odipo to part from her beloved grandson three years ago, she lived on and hoped for a happy reunion with him.

Shockingly, the ageing woman’s hope has been dashed. Her grandson, Mathews Obanda, 32, died during a terror attack at dusitD2 complex in Nairobi.

Speaking to The Standard at her home in Usenge village on Wednesday, the distraught woman said Obanda’s parents died when he was still very young and she took care of him for years before he travelled to Nairobi to search for a job.

“It is really painful I am mourning a grandchild who was supposed to bury me. He was killed when his young family needed him most,” Odipo muttered.

After giving up everything to raise the little Obanda, Odipo says she has only been left with long days and nights where her soul is being tormented at the brink of defeat.

“He assured me he would make the family proud and we all hoped to see him again one day. I want to see his corpse. I want to see his face again,” she said tearfully.

It is now her desire to collect Obanda’s remains and give him a dignified sendoff beside his parents’ graves. But the cost of bringing the body won’t allow her.

For the deceased’s wife Arnold Aluoch, no pain can describe the loss of a loved one especially of a family struggling to eke out a living.

The pain is too much for the 30-year-old to bear especially coming barely three years after she nearly lost her life in a grisly accident.

The death of her husband, who worked at a hotel within the building, has rekindled fresh memories of her spouse whom she said was more than a companion.

The family is now appealing to well-wishers to support them in footing burial expenses. Obanda’s body is lying at Chiromo mortuary.

Narrating events that led to her husband’s death, Aluoch told The Standard that he bade her goodbye and promised to come back home in the evening.

“He told me to ensure that I prepare the kids for schools. I never thought this would be the last word I would hear from him,” she recalls.

Aluoch, whose hand was amputated following an accident, ponders who will take care of her and her children.

"He loved his family so much and stood with me when I got the accident. He was helping me to cook and wash since my hand was amputated," said Aluoch.