Cardinal Njue slams fathers for asking ‘unreasonable dowry’ for daughters
Nairobi Archbishop John Cardinal Njue has censured Kenyan men for asking unreasonable bride price for their daughters.
Cardinal Njue, over the weekend, urged men to put a low premium on dowry in order to allow their daughters to get married.
A visibly annoyed Njue said he is disturbed that fathers are nowadays a major hindrance to marriages by making big demands that end up destroying relationships.
Cardinal Njue made the remarks on Sunday when he presided over a mass to mark Family Day at the Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church in Buruburu.
CALL OFF WEDDING
He narrated how he was once was forced to intervene when a man threatened to call off his daughter’s wedding because he had not been paid Sh250,000 bride price.
In the incident, the groom had rushed to him to express regret that he was calling off the wedding.
“When I asked why the change of heart, the young man told me that the father-in-law was demanding Sh 250,000 before the wedding can proceed,” he explained.
The Cardinal, who was then a Bishop in Embu, said he contacted the church priest where the groom came from and asked him to call the old man so that he (Njue) can have a chat with him.
REQUESTED MEETING
“When the old man heard that I had requested a meeting with him to just greet him, he declined and instead told the priest the wedding should go on as he did not want any trouble with the Bishop,” added Cardinal Njue amid laughter from the congregation.
He appealed to fathers not to be obstacles to their daughters’ happiness in matters of marriage.
During the function, the Cardinal closed the parish year of women and inaugurated the year of the youth which will run upto June next year. He was accompanied by the Parish priest Father Moses Kago.