A carpenter from Sichei in Kabuchai constituency, Bungoma county on Thursday took his life due to what relatives suspect was pressure to provide for his family.
Eliud Wangwa, 48, committed suicide in his carpentry workshop. He is survived by his widow and six children.
Shocked family members, neighbours and residents thronged the homestead to condole with the bereaved.
Matilda Nakhungu, the widow, said that her husband was very caring and supportive to her and she did not know why he decided to take his own life.
His brother, Christopher Wekesa said that Wangwa was a very friendly man and a good carpenter loved by many.
“My brother has been having a lot of pressure and stress. He told me about the school fees of his children, something that I believe might have forced him to take his own life,” he said.
Nakhungu said that her husband left the house on Thursday morning and went to his workshop without taking breakfast. She found that strange but dismissed it.
Nakhungu said prior to the incident, her husband had been complaining of severe headache for a week.
The teary widow said that the dangling body of her husband was discovered by children at about 4pm when they came from school.
She said that her husband had left his phone in the house and getting to know where he was proved very difficult.
“We only discovered that his workshop was closed and did not know he was inside,” she said.
Nakhungu said her husband was hit by a tree he was cutting for timber in 2014 and had his skull badly damaged.
They took him to Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital where he was treated and discharged.
After that incident, her husband experienced severe headaches and preferred silent and calm places.
Nakhungu said that her husband had been struggling to make furniture and sell in schools and to individuals, to educate their children.
“My husband also drank alcohol sometimes and could be very harsh when inebriated,” she said.
She said that she does not know what to do now that her husband has left her with the burden of taking care of and educating their children.
Wangwa's mother fainted before she could speak to the press.
Ken Nyongesa, a village elder, said that the body will have to be buried at night in line with Bukusu traditions. The family will also need to be cleansed.
He asked married people to seek advice from elders and spiritual leaders to help solve any problems instead of taking drastic actions.
Sichei chief said that police have launched probe into the incident. The body was taken to Bungoma Referral Hospital morgue.
