Former Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) chair, the late Wafula Chebukati, met his wife Mary in Mombasa in 1988 as she was undertaking training.
Mary was then working as an accountant with the Ministry of Finance.
“I first met you when I was attending a training sponsored by the National Treasury in Mombasa in 1988. You were then running your law firm, Wanyonyi and Company Advocates,” Mary said in a tribute to her late husband.
According to the eulogy, what started as him giving legal advice ended up in love and courtship with numerous phone calls to Nairobi, where Mary lived, and biweekly flights to visit her.
“It took many dinners before he gathered the courage to propose to her.”
They tied the knot on April 21, 1990, in Nairobi and went on to have three children: a daughter, Rachel and two sons, Jonathan and Emmanuel.
“As true as he was to his profession was he to his role as a dad. He always enjoyed the holiday season with family, as he would make it a point to take his family on a holiday every year during the Christmas period, without fail,” the tribute said.
In her tribute, Mary noted that in the early days of their marriage, they had only one car until later when they realised having a second car was more of a necessity than a luxury.
“Every morning, you would drop me at the district treasury where I worked and pick me up in the evening. I recall on one of those days as a young married couple, we had a disagreement, and I gave you the silent treatment on the drive to work – nil by mouth,” she recalled.
“When you came to pick me up in the evening, you saw me from a distance laughing heartily, chatting and very excited. When I got into the car, I instantly resumed my silence. You looked at me and said, “Was that you I just saw, or was it someone else who looked exactly like you – happy and cheerful?” I couldn’t hold back the smile anymore.”
Mary said Chebukati encouraged her in her career.
“In our golfing circles, you served as
chairman of Mombasa Golf Club while I was the Lady Captain. Together, we defied
the belief that a single family couldn’t hold leadership positions
simultaneously. We repeated this at Nyali Golf Club,” she stated.
Mary added that she still cannot believe that Chebukati is gone.
“For me, this still feels like a dream, one I keep hoping to wake up from. I long to return home and find you in the garden, soaking up the sun, assisted by your trusted aides. But, alas, we must accept God’s will.”
