‘Come back home’, Kakamega County family’s plea to lost kin

Portrait of seventeen years old Allan Simiyu on June 15th, 2016. The teen is said to have been last seen in Luanda town, Emuhaya in the company of a schoolmate who has since also gone missing. (PHOTO: CHRISPEN SECHEHRE/ STANDARD)

When schools closed for April holidays, Allan Simiyu Milkau, 17, came to his aunt’s home but left a short while later. That was the last his family has seen or heard from him.

Allan, an orphan, would go to his aunt Selfa Juma’s home barely 500 metres away from Chebuyusi High School in Navakholo, Kakamega County, where he is a form four student.

“Allan came home with a schoolmate and said they were travelling to Nairobi where they would each stay with guardians. He appeared to be in a hurry even as he bade me farewell,”  she says.

Selfa says she had no idea Allan was missing until a teacher called demanding to know his whereabouts.

“He had apparently failed to attend holiday tuition and this got the teachers concerned and they decided to reach out to me as his guardian,” she says.

When schools reopened for second term, Allan’s elder brother Geoffrey Kabula became worried because he did not show up.

“I got alarmed when my brother did not communicate. He would usually come to my place for pocket money before going back to school and I found it strange that he had not done so this time round,” Kabula says.

He reported his brother’s disappearance to the police and also started looking for him but his efforts have so far yielded no results.

Initially, Allan would call relatives to ask for some assistance but all of a sudden communication died and he could not be reached on phone. He has an aunt living in Nairobi and she would inform relatives at home each time he called.

The teen is said to have been seen in Luanda town, Emuhaya in the company of a schoolmate who has since also gone missing.

Allan’s teachers are worried he might not sit for KCSE while his relatives fear the worst.

“We have been given the name of the boy he was last seen with him but they are no longer together. I wish my brother could call and tell us where he is and what he is up to,” Kabula says.

He recalls his last meeting with the younger brother at Kakamega High School during inter schools rugby tournament.

“Allan asked me to meet him after the tournament and he looked jovial as usual when I arrived and gave him some money for use at school,” he says.

The boys is said to have been a calm and disciplined student until he moved to form three and started exhibiting unbecoming behaviour.

The school administration said they had received conflicting information about the student’s whereabouts from his guardians and are yet to establish what is going on.

“We even tried to use Allan’s best friend known as Duncan Malele to locate him but that route did not lead us anywhere,” says a teacher who sought anonymity since he is not allowed to speak to the press.

At some point, Malele, also a form four student, pointed out that Allan had rented a house at Manyatta in Kisumu but could not be reached on phone as he had acquired a new sim card to avoid being traced.

Allan, according to the teacher is a very bright student: “He is one of those candidates we are counting on to score high marks in KCSE examinations and put the name of our school on the map.”

Kabula said he is not leaving anything to chance until he finds out where his brother is and what he is doing.

“Anything can happen, he might have been lured to join Al-Shabaab or engage in illegal activities. We know students within that age group are vulnerable and can be easily,” he says.

Anyone with information on the young man’s whereabouts can get in touch with us on: [email protected]