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Award-winning actress Jackie Matubia has candidly shared her journey of love, loss, and self-discovery in a recent podcast interview with Dr. Ofweneke.
Speaking about her experiences, the mother of two spoke about her relationship with Blessing Lung’aho, the father of her second child.
Matubia and Lung’aho made their romance public on Valentine’s Day in 2022, sharing a heartwarming video where she introduced him as her soon-to-be baby daddy while she was heavily pregnant with their daughter, Zendaya.
Two months later, Lung’aho proposed, and an ecstatic Matubia announced on social media, “He proposed, and I said yes! I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life laughing and loving you always!”
However, Matubia’s perspective on marriage has evolved over time. “My wake-up call was my second marriage,” she revealed, adding that she wouldn’t even consider it a proper marriage because they didn’t go through the traditional or legal steps.
“My first marriage was real, and I remember telling Blessing that I didn’t want marriage, didn’t want to walk down the aisle.”
Reflecting on the turning point in her life, she said, “When I got Zendaya, I had a moment of clarity. I kept asking myself if this was the life I wanted for myself. But I was constantly worried about what people would say.”
The actress also spoke about the challenges of raising Zendaya as a single mother after parting ways with Lung’aho.
“When I told the dad to go, he left,” she shared. “In my head, I was like, this is not the first time to raise a kid out of marriage and co-parent. And I fought… I fought for the dad to be in the daughter’s life. But he did not. And you cannot force a man. I tried… And was like, I can only do so much,” she went on to allege.
Though the experience was painful, Matubia found peace by choosing to focus on herself and her children. “I was very bitter. I wanted this person to suffer. But nikaona Jackie, utakua unaamka 5th of every month to bombard this person because of Sh20,000? Is it even worth it? Is my child even worth it? No, hakuna haja,” she said.
She also acknowledged the strength she has gained from being both a mother and provider. “Mi nilikuwa nimezoea kusaidiwa na my other baby daddy… Sasa huyu ni kila kitu. And when I say kila kitu, I mean even the love, care, assurance, and protection were coming from just one parent. And I told myself I’m done proving myself to people who don’t know me. The only people who I need to prove myself to are my children.”
by GEOFFREY MBUTHIA
