Nairobi: A distressed family in Tuthu village, Kangema Constituency, Murang’a County, is pleading with government agencies and well-wishers to help trace their 23-year-old missing university student. The fourth-year Marketing student at the Cooperative University of Kenya in Karen went missing on April 13, and efforts to trace him have proved futile.

According to Kenya News Agency, the Irungu family says their son, Erick Joseph Irungu, at the time of his disappearance over three weeks ago, was just a few weeks shy of completing his bachelor’s degree. “I last spoke to my son on Palm Sunday, and nothing sounded unusual. He noted that he was preparing for his final exams at the university,” narrates Joseph’s mother, Joyce Wanjiku, tears streaming down her face. “Later on, we could not reach him on phone, and we became alarmed. We dispatched some family members to try and trace his last steps, but a visit to the school confirmed our worst fears-my son had failed to show up for his final examinations that Wednesday and had not been seen at the university,” she says.

Further compounding the mystery is that, at the time of his disappearance, Joseph was staying outside the school compound, and it was on a weekend. The family immediately filed a missing person’s report and embarked on a search to uncover any leads about his whereabouts. “We have visited hospitals and morgues all over, but our search has borne no fruits. We are exasperated as a family, and we plead with anyone who may have leads to the whereabouts of our son to volunteer the information,” notes Onesmus Maina, the uncle. He observes that, as a family, they have exhausted all personal resources and avenues in their quest for answers. “We have reached our end and are in need of professional assistance, as we believe that our son is still alive and that he will one day be found,” he says, desperation palpable in his shaky voice.

Echoing similar sentiments, Erick’s grandmother, Rosalia Waithera, has called on government agencies and well-wishers to help the family find her grandson urgently. She notes that his disappearance has brought insurmountable pain and despair to the family, and their lives are at a standstill as they cannot work or go about their daily activities. “Our lives have temporarily stopped. I am advanced in age, and my grandson’s disappearance is already taking a toll on my health,” she says, adding, “The boy is disciplined, peace-loving, and obedient. We plead with anyone who may know where he is to assist us bring him home. I am convinced that he is still alive.”

In the wake of Erick’s disappearance, his family members and members of the community gather at his rural home for daily prayers, united in hope for a miracle-a phone call that would bring relief and answers to their aching hearts. “The family is going through a difficult moment, and as a community, we can only join them, pray with them, and encourage them to remain steadfast that the boy will be found alive,” says Kigumi Karuri, the family’s pastor. As the sun sets over Tuthu, the Irungu family clings to hope that Erick will return home safely, their faith unwavering despite the uncertainty of his whereabouts.