A family from Marambach village in Saboti, Trans Nzoia county has been forced to hide their mentally challenged kin in a granary.
The granary is now Ruth Lopei’s home as an attempt by her family to keep off men who have been taking advantage of her.
According to her aunt Rebecca Erupe, Lopei, who is also dump and deaf, is hidden in the food store together with her 7-months old baby.
“We are wondering why men in this area are taking advantage of this child. Every time she goes out, she comes back pregnant and no man is ready to come forward and claim his child. The fathers of the children left her the burden of taking care of their children,” Erupe said.
Aside from that, Lopei has to stay in the granary because of her violent nature as well as to protect her child from her episodes.
“Apart from sexual escapades, she is also very wild. She recently attacked me and beat me up for five hours leaving me with a broken leg when I took food to her,” the elderly woman lamented.
The 7-month old baby is shut from the world just to keep her mother calm.
“If we take the baby, she will climb through the roof and pick up the baby and washes her in mud pools before drying her like a teddy bear. We have, therefore, been forced to administer a five-year family planning method and keep her with the baby to reduce her mobility,” she added
Lopei’s troubles started years back after she had a fight with another girl from the village. It is alleged that the girl’s mother cursed her and told her she will never find peace.
“They were coming out of a water hole when they differed with a local girl and she slapped her. It was from this incident that the girl’s mother told Lopei that she will never find peace. Since that day she has remained insane,” Erupe said.
Lopei is an orphan and her aunt takes care of all her needs. Erupe however complains of not benefiting from government funds allocated to the disabled
According to the family, hiding Lopei in the granary saves on the money they would use on her contraceptive pills.
RELATED STORY: Shock As Woman Discovers Husband Has No Functional Legs After Wedding
