Family of KCB Executive Defends Night Burial, Cites Kalenjin Traditions

Family Defends Night Burial of KCB Executive, Cites Cultural Traditions

The family of Rosemary Chemutai Koech, a KCB executive who died on August 21, has defended her night burial, saying the decision was guided by Kalenjin cultural traditions and was not intended to create a dispute with her husband or his family.

Speaking during Chemutai's memorial service at her home in Chepseon, Kericho County, on Saturday, Kipkendek clan national chairman Samwel Keter urged Kenyans to ignore reports suggesting a family feud over her burial. Keter said the clan had held extensive consultations before Chemutai was laid to rest Friday night, insisting that the burial arrangements were dictated by cultural practices following the circumstances surrounding her death.

"We are celebrating Rosemary's life. We are also extending and inviting everybody. We are welcoming everybody," Keter said.

He said the clan had a responsibility to perform certain rituals when a person dies in circumstances such as those surrounding Chemutai's death. According to Keter, Kalenjin traditions require the clan to conduct specific ceremonies before the deceased is buried, particularly when death occurs through an act that requires cultural cleansing.

"Our child (Chemutai) went through what she went through, but as per our culture there are some things that we have to perform," he said.

Keter said the body could not be kept for an extended period after such a death, even after a postmortem had been conducted. "When someone dies in such a manner, they should not stay more than three days. Even after a postmortem has been conducted, the body should not stay more than two days before being laid to rest," he said.

He added that the clan performed rituals intended to prevent similar incidents from occurring within the family in future. "There are also some things that are performed, and that is why we buried her. As per Kipsigis traditions, some things are done."

Husband's Court Action

The burial had been temporarily halted by a court order following a petition by Chemutai's husband, Kevin Migwe Kimwatu, who moved to the Milimani Chief Magistrate's Court seeking to stop what he described as burial arrangements being made without his involvement. In court papers filed on August 26, Kimwatu said he was sidelined from the arrangements despite being the deceased's husband and father of their four children.

Kimwatu wanted the court to declare him entitled to make decisions concerning his wife's burial and final rites and asked that her remains be buried at his ancestral home in Matasia, within Ngong Sub-County, Kajiado County.

The court action disrupted funeral plans, with the family confirming in a message to relatives and friends that a court order had been issued stopping the funeral and burial arrangements pending the hearing and determination of the case.

"This is certainly not the situation any family would wish to find itself in while grieving the loss of a loved one," the family said.

The family said its wish was for Chemutai to be buried peacefully and with dignity, while ensuring that her husband and children were given an opportunity to mourn and participate in her final farewell.

Burial on Own Land, Children's Access

Keter sought to dispel reports of a dispute between Chemutai's family and her husband, saying that Chemutai had been buried on her own land after the clan consulted her parents. He said Chemutai's four children had a right to access and live on the property, and that the family had no intention of pursuing the matter in court.

Keter revealed that the clan had performed cleansing rituals involving the robe used by Chemutai to commit suicide. He said burials are conducted within a prescribed afternoon and evening period, and the family did not consider the timing of Chemutai's burial a violation of their traditions.

Background

Chemutai served as Head of Data Protection within the Risk Division at KCB Bank Kenya Limited. According to court documents, Kimwatu and Chemutai were married on August 24, 2013, at St Austin's Catholic Church in Nairobi and had four children. Kimwatu said that although the couple had separated for about four months before her death, they had reconciled and that his wife had expressed a desire to return to their matrimonial home.

Her remains were initially preserved at Lee Funeral Services. The case was before the Chief Magistrate's Court, with the family confirming the court order stopping the funeral and burial arrangements.