- Relatives of a family stopped the burial of a woman named Gogo Nyahara due to a dowry dispute in Rumphi District, Malawi
- According to the ajuza’s family, Nyahara’s husband did not pay for one cow, which led to the deceased not being buried with her husband.
- Outraged by the chief’s decision to bury Nyahara in her husband’s village, her relatives took the coffin and took it to Junju, demanding that they be given the remaining cow.
Rumphi District, Malawi: The village chief in Mhuju Village found himself in trouble after he decided that a majuza identified as Gogo Nyahara should be buried in her husband’s village despite her family’s claim that the dowry had not been settled.
Source: Facebook
This village is under the Native Authority of Mwahenga in Rumphi District, and in a video shared by the Facebook page of Utya Pa Mpaje, the relatives of the deceased woman were seen taking the coffin with her remains because her husband did not pay all the dowry ordered by the culture.
Those who had come to pay their last respects to the woman were surprised by how Nyahara’s relatives buried the chief and then left with his remains as fast as lightning.
Source: Getty Images
How long was Gogo Nyahara married?
It was learned that Nyahara, who died on February 6, 2026, was married to the late Mr. Mazolo for more than 50 years, but the family said part of the dowry was incomplete, and one cow was still left to complete the dowry.
Relatives of the deceased argued that, according to tradition, she could not be buried in her husband’s village before the dowry was completed.
“If the dowry is not completed, Nyahara will be buried in Junju, Livingstonia,” said one of the relatives.
Both parties tried to negotiate this issue but did not reach an agreement, and the situation became more complicated because the husband of the deceased also died, which created a controversy about who should pay the remaining debt.
As time passed, the village leader ordered the funeral procedures to begin, saying it was too late.
This decision angered Nyahara’s relatives, and they confronted the leader, beat him, then took the coffin and left for Junju, Livingstonia.
What did Kenyans say about this story?
- Charlotte Grace: “How can you be married to someone for more than 50 years and still not complete paying the dowry?”
- Rachel Bema: “I wonder if Malawi has all the documents to be called a country.”
- SG Gondwe: “There is some story out there that has not yet completed the Lobola payment, but is watching his wife closely, eish.”
- Janice Richards: “As for funerals, Zambia and Malawi are brothers.”
- Paul McScholes: “Tradition is very important regardless, even Abraham paid a dowry for Sarah’s family.”
- Chris Kaisa: “50 years? Gogo Nyahara has been living in her husband’s village for 50 years and made the village her home.”
- Wizy Chaweza: “So the family was waiting until now to claim the remaining cow. Traditions are respected.”
- Esther Tumbie Nyirongo: “It’s very common, I don’t understand what they get.”
Funeral tension causes the woman’s body to remain in the coffin
In another story, Lorrine Joy Lumadi’s body had to remain at Rosewood Nursing Home for over a year after her mother and her husband failed to reach an agreement on who should bury her.
Ruth Mugesani’ claimed that her son, Davis Were, did not pay her daughter’s dowry and therefore could not bury her.
Were, on the other hand, said he could not pay the dowry because his wife’s mother, who is single, did not have such a ceremony.
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