Renowned Inooro FM family therapist Ann Wa Muratha has sought to advise men especially from Central Kenya region where there has been a surge of domestic violence, broken families and homicides in lately.
Muratha says that the prevailing status quo in many Central Kenya households is a culmination of a deeply-rooted disconnect among many couples.
Consequently, she says, young girls have resorted to preferring old men (sponsor relationships) as the fear of being plunged into single-motherhood due to broken marriages among many of them become real.
As such, the counselor has advised the region's men on three things which she says are key if they want to have peaceful times with their wives. We enumerate them below.
1. Make friendship with your wife right from day one of marriage
Wa Muratha has dissuaded Central men against the idea of leaving their wives breaking their backs with manual jobs in the villages as they enjoy life to the fullest at 'Kiamatawa' (town) till they hit retirement age.
"Marriage is a journey that both of you have to walk together from day one when you are both youthful. Returning to your wife when you are already used, spent and beginning to become spiritual, will be met with a lot of resistance," Wamuratha says via a video uploaded on YouTube
2. Invest during your youth
Wa Muratha states that one of the major things that continue to deny many Central Kenya men peace in their own households is what she has termed as 'financial menopause' occasioned by failure by many men to invest while young. Instead, she says, many choose to spend all their youth and resources 'chasing skirts' in towns.
3. Educate your children and let them know you are the one doing it
The reason some elderly men with educated and rich children in the region are left at the mercy of the local dispensary when they fall as their wives are taken to high-end hospitals, Wamuratha says, is because when such kids were growing up they were made by their 'cunning' mother to believe that she educated them.
To avoid such a scenario, Wa Muratha wants men to ensure that their presence and contribution is felt by their kids throughout their education.