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The Nairobian

Ex-KDF doctor fights to shield 'sick' child

Nairobi

By Moses Michira | Sep 28, 2018

A former military doctor is fighting to keep her six-year-old son after an unidentified neighbour accused her of child neglect.

The doctor, who has had stints with the Kenya Defence Forces as a dentist, says she has done everything possible to ensure her child’s well-being.

The child was born in India with a congenital heart problem, which typically has lifelong implications on normal development.

The doctor says in affidavits filed in court that she quit her dentist job to give the infant first-hand care and only left him with her mother temporarily when she absolutely needed to do locums.

Penina Kanythia, a children’s officer, told the court that the caregiver was denying the boy healthcare, which infringed on his right to survival and development.

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Among the observations reported in court was that although the child appeared weaker than his peers, he was jovial and performed very well academically.

The doctor’s mother is listed as the respondent.

Separate suit

In a separate suit filed in the same court, the doctor is demanding a stay on the orders sought and that she be enjoined as a parent of the minor.

Among the documents she attached in her affidavit was a medical report indicating that the minor was medically fit and did not need the procedures sought by the complainant and the children’s officer.

She further claimed that the unidentified neighbour could be out to extort her “wealthy” family through a wider plot to separate the child from the mother and grandmother.

It all started with a post on a social media networking group.

The neighbour is said to have posted concerns about the supposed child neglect.

The children’s officer picked up the matter and involved a forensic doctor attached to the police.

The two visited the home where they found that the child had gone to school.

Ms Kanythia then traced the minor to the school, where she made observations before filing the suit that seeks to have the child placed under protection.