Mombasa single mum hopes encounter with Ruto will change her life

Maryam Muhideen, Mombasa woman representative Zamzam Mohamed and Baby Malyuun at their one-bedroom house at Tononoka in Mombasa on Monday, May 25 / BRIAN OTIENO

President Ruto carries baby Malyuun at Majengo in Mombasa on Monday, May 25 / BRIAN OTIENO

Maryam Muhideen and her six-month-old baby Malyuun at their one-bedroom house at Tononoka in Mombasa on Friday / BRIAN OTIENO

What started as normal political mobilisation ended up being a major deal for 31-year-old Maryam Muhideen.

All this thanks to her six-month-old baby, Malyuun Muhideen. Malyuun is a Somali word for million.

The morning of Monday, May 25, 2026, will perhaps forever be etched on Maryam’s life going forward.

“I was at home when I was told there is a meeting where the President will be officially launching the construction of the Majengo market in Majengo,” Maryam told the Star on Friday.

“As jobless youth in the area, we were rounded up, had our names taken and told to make our way to Majengo. I was sure I would get at least Sh500 to buy some milk and other foods for my baby,” Maryam said.

And since at that time everybody was out and there was no one to leave her baby with, she decided to carry her along.

That day, the rains were intermittent; pouring and stopping in turns as if testing the resolve of the crowd eager to catch a glimpse of President Ruto in person, and, to some, maybe get the opportunity to shake his hand.

When the high-profile guests started streaming in on foot, Maryam moved forward, but was afraid of the hawk-eyed security personnel who were keeping the crowds at bay.

“I saw the likes of (Mining CS Hassan) Joho coming in, and at the very end I saw the President himself alighting from the vehicle. I had never seen him at close range.

“Excitement suddenly overwhelmed me, and I momentarily forgot I was carrying my baby and was exposing her to danger should anything happen there,” Maryam, a single mother of three, said.

She was right at the edge of the narrow road leading to the Majengo market.

She timed when the security personnel had turned their eyes towards the President to dart a little bit forward, so she was in the first line of the crowd.

“When the President was approaching, I shouted in excitement and lifted my baby in the air. Luckily, the President noticed and came right towards me. He took my baby from my hands and lifted her. I felt some excitement and almost fell because I suddenly felt my knees weaken,” she said.

She was speaking in their tiny, dilapidated one-bedroom house, where their huge family, consisting of more than 10 people, lives, at Tononoka, right next to the famous Tononoka grounds.

“I said to myself, this will be my best day in life. I cannot wait to tell my Malyuun when she comes of age that she was carried by a Kenyan president,” she said.

When she got home after the meeting, she started getting calls and text messages from family and friends, everyone telling her they had seen her baby being carried by President Ruto.

Malyuun has now been nicknamed President Ruto’s granddaughter by everyone in Tononoka.

Her excitement had not even subsided when she got a call from one of Mombasa woman representative Zamzam Mohamed’s staff informing her that the woman rep was looking for her because she had an important message for message.

“I did not expect someone like President Ruto to even remember a moment like that. It turns out he did and had requested Mama Zamzam to trace me. He offered me a good amount for my baby’s education and for me to start a business,” Maryam said.

Mama Zamzam was sent with some Sh500,000 to deliver to Maryam. Some Sh200,000 was for Baby Malyuun’s education while Sh300,000 was for Maryam to start a business for herself.

However, because none of her family members has a job, Maryam has suddenly become the family’s breadwinner.

“Now everybody is making calls wanting a share of the money, forgetting that my family has a lot of problems and this is not even enough,” she said, adding that they feel their security is not guaranteed.

“Now, people knock on our door even at 1 a.m. " We wonder who they are,” she said.

She is now appealing to President William Ruto to give her a job so she can take care of her family, including her father, a retired Administration Police officer, and mother, with whom she lives in the tiny, dilapidated one-bedroom house at Tononoka.

She would like another, now formal, meeting with President Ruto.

“Life has been so hard for us. I had reached rock bottom and had twice contemplated suicide. But I decided against it because of my children. Now I can see God’s doing,” Maryam revealed to the Star.

“I have three children and was forced to come back home after I was chased away by my husband. My sisters and brothers and their children also live with us, with our parents. No one has a job,” she said.

She dropped out of school at Form Three because of school fees issues but she struggled to get herself computer packages training.

“If President Ruto, or anyone else, offers a job to me, my family would at least be somewhere. We cannot continue living like this, with more than 10 people in this tiny house. Our babies are getting older, and we require more space,” Maryam said.

Her mother, Jawaher Hassan, who is a political campaigner, said a job for Maryam or any of her children would be the best gift that President Ruto would ever give their family.

“I have been to State House Mombasa during President Moi’s time. I was an active political campaigner then, but now I do not have that same strength anymore. I sing Ruto against the wishes of my friends because I believe in his leadership,” Jawaher, who has lived in Mombasa for more than 40 years, said

“My husband retired about three years ago, and since then, life has become even harder. A job for Maryam or anyone else would lift this family,” she said.

INSTANT ANALYSIS:

Maryam said she suffered depression when she was divorced, being left with three children to feed, with no job or any source of income. It is this depression that led her to contemplate suicide. Twice. She hopes her encounter with President Ruto will open doors for her as she asks for a formal meeting with him now.