Betting freaks no longer commit suicide

[ PHOTO : COURTESY ]

When bookies emerged in Kenya, most people took it as a life-saver and used all their fortunes blindly without thinking about the possibility of losing, which was daft because lottery is pegged on luck.

As a result, a number of suicides were reported, some losers fell seriously ill while others simply lost their minds after life savings,  house rents, school fees and bank loans went down the drain.

In one incident, a 32-year old Kericho man, who was being allegedly hunted down by creditors, reportedly hanged himself after losing a bet-which he had hoped could help him clear his debts.

“The deceased was a former caretaker of a block of houses near Brooke trading centre bus stage. One of the prospective tenants whom he had taken some money from but failed to allocate him a house was pressing him for a refund. He had reported the matter to local police post, something that distressed the deceased,” his friend said at that time.

He explained that his friend had resorted to betting, with the hope that he would win the jackpot and use the windfall to settle his debts, only to lose most of his money and slide into depression.

Another man also hanged himself in Eldoret for losing Sh45, 000 and another one in Narok for losing Sh9, 000. The suicides hit people of all walks of life; from parents to students.  In 2016, one student hanged himself after losing 80k meant for school fees.

But Kenya Football Fans Association (KEFOFA) Chairman Francis Liboyi, who is impressed with the manner in which Kenyans have adapted to betting, says this is no longer the case.

“For the last two years, football fans have matured up and learnt how to deal with betting. They have known that betting is a thing done for leisure with extra coins in the pocket; not a place to throw in all one’s life saving money. I think this has reduced or even ended completely, the cases of suicide,” the official told The Nairobian.