“My biggest mistake in life is marrying Robert Burale. The darkest period in my life was when I was with Robert Burale.” Rozina Mwakideu’s claims about Robert Burale during their marriage have sent shockwaves through Kenya’s entertainment circles, resurfacing painful memories from their short-lived union over a decade ago. In a raw interview with her brother, media personality Alex Mwakideu, Rozina laid bare the turmoil that defined her time as the preacher’s wife, calling it the darkest chapter of her life.
The revelations came during a candid episode of Alex’s podcast, where Rozina, a gospel singer and Alex’s elder sister, reflected on their 2003 marriage that lasted just one year and two days.
Speaking with unfiltered emotion, she described how what began as a whirlwind romance online quickly unravelled into isolation and betrayal. Rozina first met Robert Burale through digital channels, a novelty back then.
Their second encounter led straight to his family home in the upscale Karen neighbourhood of Nairobi. But red flags emerged almost immediately. “A few days after we met, he asked me for KSh 250,000, claiming it was for his dad’s estate,” she recounted, her voice steady but laced with regret.
She handed over the money despite her gut telling her otherwise, blinded by what she now sees as classic love-bombing tactics. Warnings poured in from all sides. Women messaged her on Facebook, urging her to steer clear. Her late sister and mother echoed the concerns.
“My mum said she does not see light when she sees him,” Rozina shared, admitting she ignored them all in the haze of infatuation. The marriage ceremony itself felt off, she added, with whispers among guests that other women had eyed the role of Mrs Burale.
Life after the vows turned suffocating. Holed up in the Karen house, Rozina says Burale rarely let her step out. He severed her ties to family and friends, leaving her in a bubble of control. “He cut me off from everyone,” she said, painting a picture of emotional captivity that chipped away at her spirit.
The honeymoon in South Africa, meant to seal their bond, only deepened the cracks. For 10 days, their premarital celibacy pledge held firm—no intimacy at all. “The celibacy continued,” Rozina revealed bluntly.
Worse, she later learnt the trip was bankrolled not by the couple, but by a wealthy, married woman smitten with Burale. The discovery stung like salt in an open wound. Back home, suspicions festered.
One day, Rozina cracked Burale’s laptop password and stumbled upon a digital vault of secrets: steamy email threads, intimate photos of other women, and explicit videos. “That is what caught my attention. I could not keep quiet,” she told Alex, her voice cracking at the memory.
Arguments erupted, but resolution never followed. The unresolved betrayal hung over their home like a storm cloud. Financial shadows loomed large too. Creditors hounded her with calls from the police, demanding repayments for Burale’s debts. Rent went unpaid despite incoming funds vanishing into thin air.
“Where was that money going?” she wondered aloud, trapped in a web of mistrust and unpaid bills. Desperation built to a breaking point. Rozina attempted to flee twice, each time drawn back by pleas or promises. The third try was different—a raw fight for survival. “It was a matter of life and death,” she confessed.
She dialled Alex in tears, and he rushed to extract her from the chaos. No children came from the union, a fact she now views as a divine mercy. Looking back, Rozina questions the very foundation.
“Why did he marry me? “It wasn’t tied to love,” she pondered, her words echoing the confusion of a woman forever changed. Marrying Burale, she declared without hesitation, stands as her life’s gravest error, the bleakest stretch of her 40-plus years.
Burale, for his part, addressed the split earlier on Alex’s show. In a September episode, the life coach insisted there was no abuse or violence. “We were two good people who fell in love, which is not recommended in marriage,” he quipped, emphasising mutual respect despite the fallout.
He praised Rozina as a “respectable woman” but skirted deeper details, leaving her narrative to fill the gaps. The interviews have ignited online buzz. Social media lit up with reactions, from sympathetic nods to calls for accountability.