Widows of former MP Kihika Kimani of Nakuru North; from left Charity Nyambura, Miriam Warau, Jane Wanjiru, Alice Makuhi and Lucy Wangari speak to the press in Nakuru on 12 November 2016. [File, Standard]
One of the widows of the late politician Dixon Kihika Kimani lost an attempt to keep her an administrator in the Sh600 million estate left behind by the former MP.
Judge Rachel Ng’etich, judge of the High Court, replaces Margaret Wambui, the first wife of Kihika, with her newborn daughter Florence Nduta as one of the joint administrators of the estate.
Wambui wanted to replace Nduta with her third born daughter Erishifa Wanjiru. Wambui was the first administrator of the property of Sh600 million.
Hold on to position
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Wambui, 90, and Alice Mukuhi, Mary Wangari and Miriam Warau, all widows of the politician, have held the administrative post since receiving administrative letters on October 13, 2009.
The widows took over the estate after the MP died on 19 November 2004, aged 78.
In 2018, however, their three children Florence Nduta (Wambui’s), Anthony Kihika (Mukuhi’s) and Judy Muthoni (Wangari’s) submitted applications to replace them as administrators.
The children claim their mothers are old, senile and unable to perform the duties of administrators.
The four widows opposed the application. They said they are still strong enough to administer the properties on behalf of the other beneficiaries.
Judge Anthony Ndung’u dismissed the application on January 24, 2019. The brothers and sisters were dissatisfied and filed an appeal on April 17, 2019. It is still pending in the Court of Appeal.
On November 1, 2019, however, Wambui changed his mind and stepped down as the first administrator.
She agreed that Wanjiru would take over as administrator on allegations that she would be well represented in the properties.
Wanjiru swore the affidavit on behalf of her mother, arguing that her mother was old and in poor health.
“The first administrator (Wambui) has requested to retire and be replaced by the applicant (Wanjiru), who will protect her interests in the properties,” the application reads.
Wanjiru believed that her mother had worked hard for the past 15 years and had completed her administrative duties honestly and fairly.
“The beneficiaries agreed and signed a consent for the applicant to replace her mother to represent her interest in the property,” the application reads.
Wambui was married to Kihika for 50 years before he died.
Opposed by nduta
The application was opposed by Nduta (51) and her stepmother Mukuhi.
In her reply of 6 December 2019, Nduta said that not all beneficiaries have signed the consent.
“Only seven out of 47 beneficiaries consulted and agreed to replace the respondent’s (Nduta) mother with one of her daughters,” the reply reads.
She alleges that although she is a beneficiary, she was not given the opportunity to give her consent as required by law.
‘The respondent was not informed of the said substitute. She doubts whether the permission was granted. ”
Nduta told the court that she and her two siblings had a pending appeal over the replacement of her mother as administrator.
She added that her sister Wanjiru has been living in the US since 1997 and has only occasionally visited Kenya.
“Due to the distance between the US and Kenya, the applicant is not fit to be an administrator,” the reply read.
Her stepmother, Mukuhi, reflected her sentiments, saying that Wanjiru had been unreliable since she was abroad. None of Nduta’s claims have been disputed.