There was jubilation in Bonyando, Kiranda village, Kisii County on Friday, October 25, following the return of their kin who left home 34 years ago.
Mr Joseph Nyaanga Andima left home in 1990 at the age of 34. At the time of his departure, he was already a family man blessed with four children. While his return has brought joy, it has also left many unanswered questions as to why he took so long to return and without any communication.
His sister, Agnes Kerubo, said that on the day Mr Andima disappeared, she had gone to sell fruits at Daraja Mbili market in Kisii town.
"He left me with a toddler. We were in the market selling oranges and lemons. He left and never came back," said Ms Kerubo.
As days passed with no news of his whereabouts, the family began searching for him, but to no avail.
Mr Joseph Nyaanga Andima's wife Esther at their home in Bonyando, Kiranda village, Kisii County on October 25, 2024.
Photo credit: Ruth Mbula | Nation Media Group
Word came from as far away as Kitale and family members made the long journey, but when they arrived, he was nowhere to be found.
"We loved my brother and he respected us. He was a good person and so we had to look for him and we went all the way to Kitale but we were informed that the person who looked like him that we were trailing had left upon our arrival," said Ms Kerubo.
Ms Kerubo trailed him in the company of his wife, Esther Nyaanga, whom he had left behind in Kisii with their children.
The woman was struggling to pay school fees and feed the family and hoped that finding her husband would lift the burden from her shoulders.
"We have been looking for him without success. For now, we are happy that he has finally returned. His children and relatives are all happy. Nothing else," said his wife, Esther.
After that, the family lost hope of finding him and assumed he was dead.
However, the family's hope for a reunion was recently rekindled when Mr Andima's fellow villagemate, Moses Ondigi, was posted as an OCS in Kabartonjo, Baringo County.
A friend of the OCS in Kabartonjo informed the senior police officer that he needed to meet a man from Kisii who could pass as his brother now that they were both from Gusiiland.
Upon meeting him, the OCS identified him as Mr Andima, the man from his village who had gone missing several years ago.
Residents of Kiranda village celebrate the return of Mr Joseph Nyaanga Andima, who left home in 1990 at the age of 34, on October 25, 2024.
Photo credit: Ruth Mbula | Nation Media Group
Mr Ondigi informed his brothers and cousins, who quickly travelled to Kabartonjo and met him: "I am part of the team that went to Baringo and talked to him. We confirmed that he was indeed our brother. We are thankful to God that He has prevailed and wiped our tears," said his cousin Richard Ayera.
The Kisii team was pleasantly surprised to find that their relative had started another family in Kabartonjo and was living comfortably.
"We found out that he had started another family. The first family met the second family. We talked to him and the chief and both approved our coming to Kisii," said Mr Ayera.
In Kabartonjo, Mr Andima was found to have a wife and seven children, the youngest of whom was a teenager.
"I married a woman who had three children: Beatrice, Robert and Gladys. Then she gave birth to four more children - two girls and two boys," said Mr Andima.
Ms Agnes Kerubo celebrates the return of her brother Joseph Nyaanga Andima at Bonyando, Kiranda village, Kisii County on October 25, 2024.
Photo credit: Ruth Mbula | Nation Media Group
He says he left home to look for work, but the low wages he earned on construction sites did not allow him to return home, and he decided to stay away for a long time.
“I went to Baringo to look for work. I worked at construction sites with a company called Mbweha. We built roads, bridges, houses and a dam in Kabarnet,” he said.
His stepdaughters, he explained, are now professionals, with the eldest – Beatrice - now working in the health sector. They are also married.
He has supported his children through school, with the second last born sitting his Form Four examinations this year. The last born is in Form two.
“The company we worked for kept moving from place to place. I didn’t have a means of communication until I met the OCS. The OCS is from Bonyando,” he said.
He says he used to send anyone who was travelling to Kisii to pass by his home area and let them know that he was still alive but none found time to do that.
“I am happy to be back home and rejoin my family. It’s God’s plan and I am grateful to God,” he said.
