The Whopping Amount A Family Failed To Pay Before Their Kin Was Forcefully Buried In Saudi Arabia

A family in Embu County is living in grief after their daughter, who died while working in Saudi Arabia, was buried there without their consent.

Catherine Nyawira, who left Kenya in 2011 in search of greener pastures, passed away on August 1 after a short illness.

Her father, Damiano Nyaga, said that his daughter passed away on August 1 and that the family was told they had to raise Sh450,000 within 25 days to have her body brought back home.

The family began fundraising, hoping to give their loved one a final farewell at home, but they failed to raise the wanted amount. 

But on August 16, before the deadline, they received shocking news that Nyawira had already been buried in Saudi Arabia.

Nyaga explained that this was done without their consent, adding that Nyawira had two children waiting for a mother they had not seen in 15 years.

He stressed that the family wanted to bury their daughter at home.

Nyawira’s mother, Margaret, said her pain was made worse by being denied the chance to see her daughter’s remains.

She questioned how she could even accept that her daughter was dead without seeing her body, describing the experience as painful and heartbreaking.

Her sister, Josephine Wanjeru, recalled their last conversation.

She explained that Nyawira had called her, saying she was overwhelmed and unsure she would survive.

They prayed together on the phone before Nyawira was later taken to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead on arrival.

The family is now pleading with both the Kenyan and Saudi governments to intervene and ensure no other families suffer a similar fate.