Apostle Kenneth Kiarie of God’s Covenant Holiness Church in Mihang’o, Kayole in Nairobi, has ended his marriage of about three months to his 23-year-old pregnant wife, accusing her of having brought bad luck to his church as the tithe and other contributions are no longer flowing like before. The couple wedded in April this year.

The 30-year-old pastor said that he hurriedly married Marion Wagitu “because being a pastor, I needed a wife officially married in church.” adding that he borrowed money to finance their wedding which has now left him in debt.

The two were said to have fallen in love when Marion, whom he saw as a ‘humble rural girl’ attended his church.

Marion said that the marriage has been a bumpy one, with Kiarie allegedly blaming her for the declining congregation numbers and tithe amounts in his church, because of her odd behaviours in and out of the church.

“He blames me over a Sh70,000 debt he incurred to fund the wedding. He claimed I threw hot tea and stove at him and attempted to beat him in front of his parents,” said Marion, adding that the man of God often left her with Sh5 for cooking oil on grounds that she was a villager.

The pastor is being accused however of of throwing out his newly wedded wife in order to marry another woman. Even before the honeymoon was over, their marriage hit the rocks sometime in July, with both parties pointing accusing fingers at each other.

“He used to tell me that if I left, I would not get a husband, and that he had scores of beautiful girls hanging around him,” says Marion, who is now back at her Murang’a village.

However, Pastor Kiarie denied the accusation and instead accused Marion of destroying their marriage through her weird behaviour, offensive words, attempt to assault him in front of friends and blood relations and accusing him of infidelity.

“Actually, that was the third time I chased her and it has now been successful. She wanted to control me but that is not African. I said we rather separate than have one of us dead,” he explains.

Marion felt offended that Kiarie rarely funded her salon makeover sessions, while Kiarie said: “she even said I never bought her underwear. I don’t consider her sober and I want her sanity checked. I believe nobody can stay with her unless she changes.”

The short-lived marriage has been the talk of the village in Gaturi, Murang’a County and in Kayole. Kiarie says events that followed the wedding left him broke and unable to cater for her and their unborn baby.

“I did not want to send her away. I have never assaulted her, but being a pastor, everybody thinks I am the problem. A wife means a lot to a man, but Marion is not worth living with. She will harm me.”

While Marion claimed that the pastor was pressurized by his parents and siblings to dump her, Kiarie said that she was spoilt by her parents who failed to reach out to the other side and mend differences.

Both admitted that the four months they courted was too short to really know each other.

“We had not shared a house or bed before we wedded,” said Kiarie.

Marion’s father, Gabriel Chege said that he overlooked Kikuyu traditions by allowing the wedding to take place before Kiarie had paid bride price.

Source: SDE.CO,KE. [myad]

I had heard quite a lot about Yankari Game Reserve in Bauchi state from a couple of friends before my last visit sometime last week. I must confess that I was caught in awe. Yankari Game Reserve is a breath-taking place. I could argue that it’s one of the most beautiful places in Nigeria.
From Katsina where I went with my family for the Eid celebrations on the invitation of the Emir of Katsina, we proceeded to Kano and linked Bauchi which happened to be a very smooth ride. And guess what? I drove without any human guide. My only guide was my phone using google maps. Quite strange I know. Even the military men on the road were quite astonished at my guts. Driving all alone with my wife and two children without any guide. The parting word from them is “be careful” and my response was always “I am a Nigerian.”
The ride from Bauchi to the gate of the reserve was also hassle-free. I totally enjoyed all the formalities and documentation at the gate on safety issues and the do’s and don’ts especially by the security personnel on duty. They were very professional, and that in itself gave me some form of assurance that we were going to enjoy our stay.  The distance from the main gate to the resort itself was about 42 kilometers. I mean 42 kilometers with nature’s beauty and serenity. I could sense the excitement on the faces of my kids as we embarked on the trip to the resort itself. You are driving in the middle of the forest, and you meet a lot of animals like monkeys, baboons, bears, colorful birds that I haven’t seen in my life before and many others. It’s more like they are welcoming you to the resort if you ask me.  I was also really impressed with the various signs on the road leading to the resort.
And behold we were right at the gate of the resort. It was a huge shock. And I could see the light in the eyes of my wife and kids. Again, the security men welcomed us warmly and also was another round of checks, documentation and cautions on the dos and don’ts at the resort. Especially with the baboons. The warning was, “don’t attempt to give them food; else they might ruin your stay by always wanting to get more food from you. They can even grab your bag open to take food or snatch your lunch box right from your hand.” It was a funny experience on the side of the baboons. They are more like area boys. And they are everywhere amazingly.
The reception was professional. I was very impressed, likewise my wife. Our guide welcomed us warmly and took us around the various accommodations available, even though we had called earlier to book reservations. There was still that flexibility. At some point, we were all engulfed with the natural habitat, so much so that we were basking in the euphoria of our temporary home for a couple of days.
Yankari can’t be compared to anywhere I have visited in most of the African countries and even Western nations that I have visited. It’s such a huge place that covers an area of about 2,244 square kilometers. The attractions are too many at the resort. But for me, it was the natural warm water springs. It was so clean that even if you dropped a pin, you could see it. The wikki spring has a constant temperature of 31.1 °C through the year during both day and night. In one of my sojourns, my family and I spent over 10 hours in the spring, because of the warmth and relaxing nature. I thought I was on another planet.  I was left in awe with the ambiance. I was also carried away with the hugeness of the place and how it has been effectively managed since 1st December 1962 when it was opened to the public. Yankari was upgraded to a national park in 1991 and managed by the National Parks Service until 2006 when responsibility for the management of the reserve was handed back to Bauchi State Government and managed by the Ministry of Tourism and Culture of Bauchi State

I was made to understand that the reserve is home to over 50 species of mammal including African bush elephant, olive baboon, patas monkey, Tantalus monkey, roan antelope, western hartebeest, West African lion, African buffalo, waterbuck, bushbuck, and hippopotamus. And over 350 species of birds.  According to the 2015 Annual report prepared by the Wildlife Conservative Society (WSC), Yankari Game Reserve contains the largest surviving elephant population in Nigeria, and one of the largest remaining in West Africa.
The Yankari Game Reserve is such an interesting place regarding infrastructures, road network, the quality of service, the safety measures in place, the professionalism of the staff and on the whole in location and ambiance. In my opinion, this place is fantastic and could be a huge revenue earner for the Nigerian government if enough publicity could be accorded the place as a number one tourist destination in Africa.
It is indeed the tourist destination of choice in Africa because, in all of my travels around the African continent, I haven’t come across such beauty to behold in all of my trips. This is quite commendable and more can be done.
There was also a humorous side to the whole experience. It’s the experience with the baboons. You are always advised to keep your doors and windows shut at all times because the baboons move around checking for doors that are open, and once they find one, they open and search for food. And if your window is left open, the parent baboons would allow their kids to go inside through the window to get food. I experienced this once, and it was just so hilarious. [myad]