Narok woman rescued after bid to give away newborn

Evelyn Ojango from Juakali village in Mau, Narok County, holds her day-old baby whom she wanted to give for free to a well-wisher in Nakuru town. [PHOTO: MERCY KAHENDA/STANDARD]

NAKURU: A 45-year-old woman has shocked residents after attempting to give out her day-old baby boy.

Evelyn Ojango said she was protecting the newborn from being killed by her husband.

“I was very happy giving birth to a smiling baby boy but I feared he would be killed by his father who had warned me after conceiving never to give birth to a baby boy,” she narrated.

Ms Ojango travelled from Juakali village in Mau, Narok, on Sunday night and delivered her baby at the Rift Valley Provincial General Hospital in Nakuru.

The mother of the 3.6kg bouncing baby boy said she was discharged from the facility on Tuesday evening but was worried about the welfare of her fourth born son.

But instead of reporting back to her family in Narok, Ms Ojango went to a main bus station to trade the baby, alleging he would be killed by her aggressive husband.

She said her husband, to whom she had been married for over 15 years, had warned her against giving birth to a baby boy.

The woman narrated her misfortunes in 2013 when her husband strangled her two-month-old baby boy at his ancestral home in Kitale.

She said she had left to fetch water at a nearby stream but on coming back was shocked to see her child lying dead on a bed.

JAIL TERM

She said her husband was arrested and imprisoned by a Kitale court but was released after a two-year jail term.

“My husband is so aggressive. I did not want to see my son die as I witnessed in 2013. I wanted him safe,” she narrated.

Ms Ojango said before travelling to Nakuru on Sunday at around 11am, her husband roughed her up, leaving her with stomach and abdominal pains that prompted her to visit a hospital.

Monica Wanjiru, a trader at the bus stage, said Ms Ojango approached her at around 4pm and asked her if she knew anybody who could take in the child or a children’s home that could keep him safe.

“This mother came here looking very weak. I bought her black tea from a food joint before hearing what she had to say,” she said.

Nakuru Railways OCPD Justina Nzivo said they trying to establish the truth behind Ojango’s story.

“Officers rescued both mother and baby at the bus station where she was attempting to sell him.

“We have also linked up with police in Narok to find out more about Ojango’s husband since she has alleged that he killed another baby in 2013,” said the police boss.

An official from the Nakuru Children’s Department who sought anonymity because she is not authorised to speak to the Press said they were considering taking the baby to a children’s home or a rescue centre.