In 2024, Ms Lilian Kadzo bade farewell to her husband, Emmanuel Mwachambi, in Kilifi County as she left for Oman in search of greener pastures.
But tragedy struck on July 4, 2025, when just one week after giving birth to twins via Caesarean section, Kadzo, 31, died at a hospital in Oman. She left behind two-week-old babies and a devastated family in Kenya.
As he mourns the loss of his wife and the mother of their three children, Mr Mwachambi now faces another heartbreak as he is unable to bury her.
His in-laws have refused to release his wife’s body for burial, demanding he first settle a dowry balance of Sh146,000.
Speaking from his home in Makata village, Kilifi South Sub-county, the 34-year-old plant operator-turned-bodaboda rider said his wife died while he was in the process of preparing legal documents to help her and the babies return to Kenya.
Ms Everline Jumwa and her son, Mr Emmanuel Mwachimba, are pictured holding their three-week-old twins at Moi International Airport in Mombasa, having arrived from Oman on Monday, July 14, 2025.
Photo credit: Maureen Ongala | Nation
“My wife had asked me to process legal documents for her agents in Oman to arrange her return home,” he said.
She had also asked him to choose names for their newborn twins—a boy and a girl. On July 4, the day she died, Mr Mwachambi tried reaching her via WhatsApp, their usual mode of communication. She did not pick up, but later sent him a voice note.
“She told me she wasn’t feeling well and asked me to let her rest. She said if I needed to reach her, I should send a voice note,” he recalled.
It turned out to be their final conversation. Later that night, around 10 pm, a neighbour called to deliver the devastating news that his wife had passed away.
Fighting back tears, Mwachambi described Kadzo as a loving and caring wife who had big dreams for their family.
“We had agreed that once she came back, she would stay home to care for the children and I would travel abroad in search of better opportunities,” he said.
He revealed that Kadzo had suspected she was pregnant before leaving for Oman, but decided to proceed with the trip anyway. She reportedly paid Sh12,000 for a medical clearance certificate. Mwachambi now suspects she may have bribed medical staff to get a clean bill of health.
“I asked if she was sure she wasn’t pregnant and she said the tests came back negative. But I always had doubts,” he said.
Ms Everline Jumwa and her son Emmanuel Mwachimba with his one-month-old twins at their home in Makata village, Kilifi South Subcounty, on Wednesday, July 23, 2025.
Photo credit: Maureen Ongala | Nation
Two weeks after arriving in Oman, Kadzo called to confirm she was indeed pregnant. She had taken another test and was told she could not proceed to her assigned employer. Instead, her agent housed her at their office while seeking contract jobs.
“I asked her to come home, but she declined. She said she had struck a deal with her agents for short-term jobs,” Mwachambi explained.
They remained in close contact, and Kadzo frequently updated him on her health. Over time, she began experiencing complications, including swollen legs.
“I grew more concerned every day. She had been jobless for months and couldn’t afford an air ticket home,” he said.
In May, she secured another job and asked for permission to work a little longer to raise money before returning to Kenya. But her condition worsened, and she was eventually taken to the hospital, where she delivered the twins via C-section.
In 2022, she travelled to Saudi Arabia for two years, leaving behind their firstborn, who was four years old at the time. She returned to Kenya in September 2023 and, after two months, announced plans to leave for Oman.
Kadzo is scheduled to be buried on Saturday, July 26, at her parents’ home in Kadzinuni village, Kilifi South. But her husband will not be part of the burial rites—her family has refused to release the body unless he clears the full dowry.
“They told me they would return the Sh4,000 I had already paid if I insisted on burying my wife,” he said. The family is demanding Sh150,000 in dowry and an extra Sh25,000 for traditional rites involving palm wine.
Now caring for three children with help from his mother, Ms Everline Jumwa, and his younger sister, Mwachambi, has appealed to well-wishers to help him find employment.
Ms Jumwa also mourned her daughter-in-law, recalling their last conversation a day before her death when Kadzo asked for her official names to name the baby girl.
“She said she was unwell but had just been discharged from hospital,” Jumwa recalled.
The twins arrived in Kenya from Oman on July 14 and were received at Moi International Airport in Mombasa.
