I fell pregnant accidentally but he should pay up

Dear Harold,

I read your column last week on upkeep and maintenance of children, and resolved to share the difficult situation I am in following an affair with a married man who honestly took good care of me. However, I accidentally fell pregnant four months ago after a condom ruptured. I did not want to take emergency pills as I do not believe in abortion – this has strained my relationship with the man, who argues that he does not want children out of wedlock, as his wife would divorce him on grounds of adultery as they were married in church and have a marriage certificate. Do I have any options to ensure he maintains the child? He may snub me arguing that I conceived accidentally?
Effie, Eldoret.

Dear Effie,

Legally, it will be an uphill task for him to convince the court not to capture for the best interests of the child because he/she is a product of a ruptured condom or any other family planning method gone sour. Once a child is born, it is the constitutional duty and responsibility of both parents to equally contribute towards the upbringing of the baby – whether the parents are married to each other or not. However, the wife of the father of your baby may have valid grounds to institute divorce proceedings against him on grounds of adultery – having sexual relations with a person you are not married to. Nevertheless, the divorce may not mean he is exempted from catering for the child he fathered.