Kisii Senator Richard Onyonka has offered a rare glimpse into his personal life, revealing how a chance encounter in the United States developed into one of his marriages.
Speaking during an interview with a local radio station on Monday, May 25, the senator, however, said their relationship began as a friendship that gradually evolved over time.
“I met Rose (Roselyn Akombe) when I was working in New York, and we just became friends and continued discussing things and everything,” Onyonka said.
“When she came to work in Nairobi, she got the job on her own merit. Did I play a role? I don’t think so, because she knew everybody. She’s a very clever lady. And one thing led to another, and here we are. We have lovely children, and life moved on.”
The interview came weeks after Onyonka made a public disclosure about his family during a memorial service for his late mother, Mama Teresia Nyaboke Omoke, where he surprised attendees by confirming his marriage to Akombe, saying: “What I know is that many of you don’t know that Roselyn Akombe is my wife.”
He further revealed that she had played a significant but quiet role within the family, including helping coordinate his mother’s medical care abroad and facilitating treatment trips to the United States.
Onyonka describes himself as a polygamist, confirming that he has more than three wives and is the father of 12 children. He has also said that Akombe, who divides her time between New York and Kenya, resides in Kitale when in the country, and that the two have been together for about 15 years.
Who is Roselyn Akombe?
Roselyn Akombe was born in Nyamira County on November 21, 1976, and holds a bachelor’s degree in education from the University of Nairobi.
She went on to build a career as a political economist and United Nations expert, later serving as a commissioner at Kenya’s Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission(IEBC) in 2017.
During preparations for the repeat presidential election ordered by the Supreme Court, she resigned on October 17, 2017, while in New York, citing concerns over electoral credibility and her personal safety.