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Veteran Kenyan singer and songwriter Eric Wainaina has admitted to cheating on his wife Sheba Hirst.
Speaking during an interview with the Sunday Magazine's Jacqueline Mahugu, Wainaina owned up to cheating on his wife a decade ago.
Wainaina narrated that the infidelity hurt his wife so bad that he would never want her to go through the same experience ever again.
“Of course this comes from having slipped up before and understanding how much it hurt my wife, and deciding I don’t ever want to do that again.
"The biggest accomplishment for me, in tandem with my wife, is having saved our relationship from imploding,” said Wainaina.
The Selina hitmaker narrated that when news of his infidelity became public, he owned up to it, knowing he had made a mistake.
“Of course I minded, but I owned it. I did not go to the press to start defending myself because that’s not the kind of person I am.
"Also, a thing like that, while I think it is right to suffer some degree of public shame, making it public is not the way to solve it because all you can do is defend yourself instead of fixing it.
"I expected it to get as bad as it got, and I was definitely not going to deny it but now it’s in my past,” he added.
The 45-year-old noted that the experience taught him so much on the importance of trust and faithfulness in relationships.
“I learnt a lot of lessons about faithfulness. We live in a society where men have been raised to imagine that it is ok to have multiple partners and that your friends will keep your secrets for you," continued Wainaina.
The singer reiterated that the society has played a part in making men think it is okay to have multiple partners with friends supporting and covering up for them as they break their homes.
"You can dodge your wife in the company of your best friend there. And when your wife calls him when seated right there with you, he will for sure come up with an excuse for you. Something like… ‘Oh, Eric just stepped out…’
"I told my friends I don’t need that from them and I don’t want to be their excuse either. Don’t get your girlfriend to call me and ask whether we were with you. I will say nope, I was not,” concluded the singer.
The affair resulted in the birth of a child.
