There was drama in a funeral service at Kitinda village, Kanduyi Constituency, Bungoma County after the body of the man who had died a week ago was returned to the mortuary after the family disagreed about where to bury the deceased.
The deceased, Chrisandus Sifuna, had two wives and both families now want to bury him.
Speaking to the press on Thursday, Sarah Mulongo, the third daughter in the first family said that the first family is the one that is expected to bury the father.
However, she blamed the sons of the second family for staging chaos on the day they had agreed to bury their father.
“I’m very annoyed with how the sons from the first family have behaved. They have painted this family badly. Let them allow us to bury our father peacefully,” she said.
She claims according to the tradition, the first family is the one that is expected to bury the father, adding that their mother died and they want their father to be buried next to their mum’s grave.
In his reply, the son from the second family dismissed Sarah’s claims noting that his father had written a will directing family members when he dies to be laid to rest at the second wife’s place.
“I think my siblings have created unnecessary tension and caused mourners to flee. We need to come to an agreement and lay our father to rest,” he said.
He argues they will fight until their father is buried at their place.
“We have returned the body to the morgue until we come to a consensus that we bury the dead. We shall hold on even for a year,” he said.
Adrian Wanjala, an elder, condemned the incident calling on family members to agree before picking up their loved ones from the morgue for burial adding that traditionally it is wrong to dig the grave then nobody is buried.
Wanjala added that the church, neighbours and friends who had come to stand with family weren't happy and left on their own.
“We have tried cooling down the situation but we have not managed, if they see that they can bury on their own then let them proceed,” Wanjala added.
