Suba North Member of Parliament Millie Odhiambo has opened up about her personal choice to reject dowry payments, explaining that for her, marriage is about love and mutual commitment rather than traditional exchanges of livestock.
Her remarks came after a viral incident involving a Nairobi lawyer who publicly retrieved cows he had earlier given as dowry to his ex-wife’s family. The dramatic scene, shared widely on social media, sparked heated discussions on the relevance and dignity of dowry practices in modern marriages.
In a reflective post on her social media platforms, Millie Odhiambo said she intentionally declined dowry payment when she got married, believing that genuine love does not need to be quantified through material gifts.
“I rarely comment on people’s personal lives, but I hope you see why I refused dowry payment for me. When I love a man, a simple word of ‘I love you and I commit to you’ suffices,” she wrote.
Odhiambo added that exchanging vows publicly is enough to demonstrate commitment between partners. However, she emphasized that equating a woman’s worth to cows is not acceptable to her, though she respects those who choose to uphold cultural traditions.
“An exchange of vows publicly shows commitment to stay together. But equating my worth to cows is a no-no for me. I respect those who choose that path, though. It’s just not a thing for me,” she stated.
The MP, who is married to a non-Luo man, further noted that if her marriage were to end, there would be no livestock to return, privately or publicly. In Luo tradition, dowry or part of it must be repaid to dissolve a customary marriage, symbolized by a goat and a cow.
Meanwhile, the lawyer involved in the weekend dowry retrieval was criticized for turning a private matter into a public spectacle, which his ex-wife described as “humiliating and far from the dignity we once shared.”
