Estate administrator exposed for 11-year delayed distribution

An administrator in the estate of late businesswoman Teresa Watuhi has been exposed for delaying her estate distribution for over 11 years.

Michelina Ngina was on July 5, 2015, issued with the grant letters to manage the estate of her late mother Watuhi, but she has never distributed it.

She was legally obligated to distribute the estate to the 10 beneficiaries, who were mostly her siblings, within six months.

However, Judge Samwel Mohochi observed that due to her failures, some of the beneficiaries died without enjoying their inheritance.

“The Law of Succession obligated the estate administrator to move the court for the confirmation of a grant within six months,” stated Mohochi.

He termed it a shock and a worry that Ngina sat on the grant for over 11 years, without executing her statutory duties.

Mohochi further noted that in her documents, Ngina casually deposed that the grant was only awaiting confirmation, but failed to provide the timeline, strategy, or concrete date as to when she intended to perform her duty.

“The courts have consistently held that such delays constitute gross mal-administration. Holding a grant for decades without seeking confirmation is an unacceptable breach of trust,” he added.

Owing to the violations, Mohochi ordered Ngina to file the summons for confirmation of the grant and the distribution table within 45 days.

Ngina was directed to explicitly list the respective estates of her deceased brothers and sisters as beneficiaries alongside her surviving siblings.

“The distribution of those specific shares shall be held in abeyance to allow the respective families of the deceased siblings to obtain grants of representation in those individual estates,” the court ruled.

In default, Mohochi ruled that the grant issued to her 11 years ago, would automatically stand revoked and annulled without any further orders or interventions from the court.

Further, he ruled that one of the beneficiaries, Margaret Wagaki, would be at liberty to seek orders appointing her as the substitute administrator of the estate.

The court also directed the Deputy Registrar to transmit the verdict to the Environment and Land Court in Nyahururu, to assist in determining the owner of one of the estate properties.

Mohochi ruled against revoking the grant issued to Ngina, on account of balancing the need for punitive action against the ultimate goal of the expeditious estate distribution.

“Replacing the administrator at this stage might initiate a fresh round of family litigation, further delaying the case. It is in the interest of justice to put a strict, self-executing judicial timeline,” he ruled.

The ruling emanated from an application by Wagaki, who sought to overthrow Ngina as an administrator for alleged mismanagement of the estate.

The court heard that Watuhi died on October 5, 2007, aged 83. At the time of her death, Watuhi was survived by 10 beneficiaries, who were then young adults aged between 39 and 64 years.

However, the family did not take structural action with her estate, until eight years later, when the grant was issued to Ngina, intestate.

Due to the shocking delays and systemic failure by Ngina to distribute the estate, some of the original beneficiaries died without enjoying their inheritance.

Furthermore, the remaining beneficiaries transitioned into senior citizens, currently aged between 59 and 83 years.

“It is a sad reality that, 20 years post-demise, the deceased cannot be said to be resting in peace while her estate remains frozen in a perpetual state of non-administration,” Mohochi lamented.