The burial of 97-year-old Clement Nyongesa Sirari in Kakapel village, Angurai Division, Teso North Sub County, on Friday was marked by emotion and outrage, as local leaders and residents condemned the prolonged detention of his wife’s remains at Bungoma County Referral Hospital Mortuary.
Jesca Ateng’e, who passed away in 2012, has remained in the facility’s morgue for over 13 years due to a land dispute that delayed her burial. The legal battle, which has since been resolved in the family’s favor, caused mortuary fees to accumulate to approximately KSh 3 million an amount the family says is impossible to pay.
Local leaders present at the burial, including Imare Clan Chairman Reuben Osiru, KNUT official and Angurai North MCA aspirant Gerald Ekisa, and Nominated Busia MCA Rose Amoit, expressed their frustration and called for government intervention.
Ekisa appealed to national and county authorities to waive the mortuary bill, saying, “This family has endured enough pain. Holding a body for 13 years, even after justice has been served, is cruel and inhumane.”
MCA Rose Amoit echoed the call for compassion, urging the authorities to expedite the release of Ateng’e’s remains so that she may finally be laid to rest beside her husband.
Clan elder Reuben Osiru described the ongoing detention as a humiliation to the entire Imare clan. “It is demeaning to keep the body of our daughter sealed in a polythene bag for more than a decade,” he said. “We urge the judiciary, especially Chief Justice Martha Koome, to intervene so that this family can bury their loved one with dignity.”
The clan leadership has issued a two-month ultimatum to resolve the matter, warning that failure to do so may lead to undisclosed action by the community.
The case continues to highlight long-standing concerns over access to justice, high funeral-related costs, and the impact of unresolved court disputes on grieving families.
