By WAHOME THUKU
Magdalene (surname withheld), a casual labourer in Nairobi, is putting up a fight for what she calls the welfare of her one-year-old son.
The legal battle pits her against a senior police officer, who she claims is the father of her son. However, the matter has taken a peculiar turn after DNA tests conducted by the Government chemist in Nairobi revealed that the officer is not the baby’s father.
Magdalene insists the results are doctored raising an issue on the integrity of DNA tests by the government. She moved to the City Children’s Court last August and applied to have the police officer, Michael Muriithi Solomon, ordered to pay for maintenance.
Muriithi is an OCS in Samburu East. He worked in Nairobi before he was transferred last year. Magdalene says she cohabited with him for six months in Nairobi and they got a son, but the man abandoned her and the child.
“I tried to solve the problem through the chief’s office in Eastleigh. He was summoned there but he failed to turn up,” she told the court.
She demanded that Muriithi be compelled to give her Sh5,000 for the child’s food every month, a Sh8,500 monthly rent, Sh2,000 for clothing every three months and Sh4,500 for a house help.
She also applied to have Muriithi ordered to educate the boy when he attains school going age and provide him with a medical cover. The court ordered Muriithi to pay interim maintenance of Sh5,000 per month.
However, in a twist, Magdalene is facing a criminal case at Makadara Law Courts for creating disturbances at Harambee Police quarters in Nairobi where Muriithi’s family lives. She is accused of threatening and insulting Muriithi’s wife, Sarah Musembi, who is also a police officer.
Meanwhile, as her son’s paternity issue became contentious the woman applied for an order for a DNA test. The test was conducted by the Government chemists at the Kenyatta National Hospital with Muriithi being ordered to foot the Sh15,600 laboratory fee.
To her shock, the results found that Muriithi was not the biological father of her son. In April Magdalene filed an urgent application at the Children’s Court accusing Muriithi of interfering with the results.
She says on the day the tests were conducted she saw Muriithi entering the lab. Magdalene wants him to take a second DNA test in a private hospital, something the policeman’s lawyer opposes.
The court has now suspended the payment of the child maintenance.
