Ric Ocasek once said, “Refusing help from someone when you need it is denying someone a chance to be helpful” and for Damaris Wambui Kamau, this is the exact scenario.
She will most definitely regret after a house that President Uhuru Kenyatta had acquired for her in Bahati Constituency, Nakuru County has been handed to another “deserving” person.
The furnished house was handed over on Sunday to 58-year-old Charles Macharia Gachie, a father of six children, three of whom are disabled.
The house was initially to be awarded to Damaris as a show of appreciation by President Uhuru Kenyatta who was entertained by the woman’s son, Dennis Ngaruiya, who impressively recited a poem at a presidential function in 2014.
Here is Ms Wambui’s current home.
President Kenyatta has also been paying school fees for Dennis Ngaruiya since the spectacular performance that happened at a Kenya Rifles pass-out parade at Lanet Barracks.
However, Ms Wambui, who lives in a rented mud house in Lanet area, rejected the refurbished two-bedroom house in Murunyu village, claiming it was substandard.
The woman accused some State House operatives of shortchanging her and compromising on the status of the house, which she says does not match a presidential gift.
Mr. Macharia, who was abandoned by his wife, has been living a life of pain taking care of his children who lost the ability to walk and speak properly despite being born normal. The family’s plight was highlighted by Citizen TV in December last year.
Mr. Macharia was grateful for the house, which according to Rift valley Regional Coordinator Mongo Chimwaga is worth Ksh.1 million including the parcel of land it sits on.
The Rift Valley Regional Coordinator also noted that the house was not part of the gifts that President Kenyatta had promised Ngaruiya. The boy will, however, continue having his school fees paid by State House.