In a surprising turn of events, Kenyans on social media have vehemently criticized and condemned Dorice Aburi, the Women’s Representative for Kisii County, following the release of a video in which she berates her security guard, claiming he had been “bereaved.”
On December 26, 2023, Aburi, popularly known as Donya Toto, shared an 82-second video on her official Facebook page, where she can be heard reprimanding her guard for not reporting to work for three weeks.
The video, titled ‘Useless officer,’ quickly went viral online, but Aburi found herself in hot water as her followers and netizens accused her of lacking empathy and decency as a leader.
In the phone conversation captured in the video, Aburi, a former radio presenter who ventured into politics, questions her guard about his absence from work for the past three weeks. The guard responds, explaining that he had not returned to work because he had lost his wife.
Although acknowledging awareness of the guard’s bereavement, Aburi insists that the funeral had concluded two weeks ago, expecting him to resume his duties immediately. Disregarding the guard’s explanation that he was still grieving and not ready to return to work, Aburi sarcastically questions the guard about the connection between his wife’s death and his job.
“Officer, you are paid for what you produce at work. You haven’t been to work for three weeks…You say you are mourning your wife, and I know you were mourning your wife, and you buried her two weeks ago…So, you didn’t come to work because you were mourning your wife?” Aburi asks, chuckling.
“You people are not serious… I don’t know what problems people have… I really don’t know,” Aburi adds before abruptly ending the conversation.
Later, she starts singing the Catholic hymn “Asubuhi ya Kupendeza,” seemingly playing it from her tablet, following the call.
In the video clip, Aburi is seen wearing a black blouse with a rosary around her neck, and her right hand appears to be lightly bandaged.
While some of her supporters argue that Aburi was joking, others criticized her for what they perceived as a lack of compassion for a grieving officer. Comments on her Facebook post included:
Simeon Atuti wrote: “Honorable Donya Dorice Aburi, you know how painful it is to lose a loved one. 2027 is the end of your political journey; even heaven won’t prevent your downfall.”
Denopapa Oshesh said: “You have lost your morals. Humans are beings with feelings. You lack empathy. Grief is a harder type of education. You have already chosen the pride associated with your stance. Where is patience and understanding as a leader?”
Wycliffe H. Omundi commented: “Your arrogance is something else. It’s disheartening! Sad!”
Jared Nyambega Ekwinini added: “I know many people here don’t understand what’s going on. Let me analyze it for better understanding…”
Following the backlash, Aburi defended herself in another Facebook post, claiming that the episode was a self-talk performance, similar to how a character in a drama can vocalize thoughts alone, without regard for any audience.
“None of my officers lost a loved one. Let’s not mock and miss the message but understand the context and not the literal meaning,” Aburi posted in her defense.
