As we drove through the muddy and pot-holed road to the village, nobody was willing to talk to the media.
Pastor Cosmas Ondieki says he has no knowledge of any orphanage registered in his son’s name but admits that he once made an attempt to register a children’s home.
“My son is a grown-up who can make his own decisions. I have not had any discussions with him over the recent happenings, but I welcome Sarah to our home,” says Pastor Ondieki.
Nearly every homestead in Rianchogu has been converted into a church or a children’s home. The churches are built inside well-fenced compounds and one rarely sees the faithful going in or leaving churches.
According to the sub –county children’s officer, the government issued a directive two weeks ago stopping the registration of new orphanage centres until further notice. Ngugi says they suspect that some locals are running children homes illegally.
“They take pictures of the children and do stories in international magazines calling for support to attract financial donations,” he said.
“We are investigating a number of cases where churches have been photographed as orphanages. Youths here spend most of their time in cyber cafes in Kisii town and could be running imaginary churches and children’s homes but still manage to receive funding in millions from donors,” he revealed.
