Man, charity in battle over his 'painful' past at a children's centre

Man claims that what transpired at the children's home has left him battling depression. [Courtesy] Henry Bryan Njoroge has a life many would perhaps envy. Living in Australia could be a life for many Kenyans seeking greener pastures. However, the 36-year-old is troubled by his past at a children's home. He has now taken to court Feed the Children Kenya, claiming he underwent abuse that has affected him up to today. "My petition speaks for past victims of the respondent's heinous conduct as well as young orphaned children who I am afraid may be suffering under the auspices of the respondent, the same way my contemporaries and myself did," he alleges in his case filed before Justice Lawrence Mugambi. But the NGO denies the claims. It states that it does not the name Bryan Henry Njoroge in its records. Instead, it argues that it has a Henry Njoroge, who was admitted at the centre four years after the complainant claims he was enroled. At the same time, Feed the Children argues that Njoroge's claims were an abuse of the court and too generalised and covering two decades, which made it impossible to trace back. "The respondent is a reputable organisation which takes its mandate and responsibility seriously. I verily believe that the right to apply to the court for redress when any right or fundamental freedom is and or is likely to be contravened is an important safeguard which should not be misused as a general tool to settle scores as the petitioner is attempting to do in these proceedings," reads their response to the petition. Njoroge says that he was born on September 1, 1988 in Kiambu. According to him, he was admitted to the Dagoretti Children's Center in 1988 as a two-month-old baby. He further claims that Mrs Salome Wanjiru Gad, then director of the centre a a representative of the Feed The Children, did the paper work. From his papers, Njoroge states that he is an orphan. He alleges that he underwent abuse and when he was seven, he was illegally handed to strangers in Thika. "This was done outside the laid down text of the Children's Act. During the transfer to the family in Thika, I remember I was woken around midnight, and a sisal sack was placed over my head," he alleges. Njoroge says he was mistreated, underfed and made to sleep outside the house. "I was forced to work in the kitchen as a labourer. In the midst of my work duties, I sustained severe injuries on my right limb," he claims, adding that he eventually escaped in 1998. He claims that at one point the centre allegedly asked Kabete Police Station to arrest him for no reason. He alleged that the then Nairobi mayor, Jeo Aketch and Thuku Njuguna, his former teacher, protested until he was released. He claims that it took the intervention of the police and Children's Officers for Dagoretti to readmit him. He alleges that what transpired at that young age has left him battling with depression in his adult life. But Feed The Children says it has for years engaged in charitable activities of providing a home, care, education, and therapy to abandoned, orphaned and vulnerable children. It states that between 1988 and 2008, Dagoretti Children's Center, which later changed its name to Francis Jones Dagoretti Children's Home, was one of the institutions it was running. The organisation says the centre stopped its orphanage care in 2016 and shut down all other operations in 2022. It argues that Njoroge had failed to identify which law or laws had been violated, or point out the date and places the alleged violations happened. "The petitioner has failed to set out in particularity, clarity and detail his allegations and has prejudiced the respondent's opportunity to fully understand and respond to the serious allegations made against it going back over 20 years," he said. Otieno asserted that Feed The Children had taken care so many children over the two decades and the documents relating to the allegations are not readily available. In addition, he said, the members of staff who were there then had since left. In its response, the school indicates that it was interested in cross-examining the doctor who claimed that Njoroge had depression. It states that it had cared for and made beautiful lives for vulnerable children. "From the centre's documents reviewed, children have been cared for and their basic and indeed their medical needs were taken care of or paid for by the respondent when required. In addition, records available confirm that the children have been supported to integrate in society and where they excel. The respondent has supported them to achieve their best," replies the NGO. The case will be heard before Justice Mwamuye on June 11, 2025.

Man, charity in battle over his 'painful' past at a children's centre

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