MP Bernard Shinali told to file evidence in child upkeep case

Ikolomani MP Bernard Shinali

A file photo of Ikolomani MP Bernard Shinali.

Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group

What you need to know:

  • Milimani Children’s Court Chief Magistrate Georgina Opakasi ordered the MP and the woman to file submissions in the case before next Tuesday, when it will be heard.

A court has directed Ikolomani MP Bernard Shinali, who has been sued by a woman over child upkeep, to file evidence in the paternity case.

Milimani Children’s Court Chief Magistrate Georgina Opakasi ordered the MP and the woman to file submissions in the case before next Tuesday, when it will be heard.

Mr Shinali has been named as a defendant in the upkeep case by the woman, who claims that she and the MP got their son in 2016.

Mr Katunga Mbuvi, who is representing the woman, is asking the court to compel the MP to part with more than Sh200,000 monthly in maintenance for the five-year-old child.

But Mr Shinali claims he is a stranger to the allegations made by the plaintiff in her case pursuing upkeep, medical and education for the boy.

“I am a stranger to the allegations by the plaintiff that I fathered her son,” Mr Shinali says in his statement of defence.

The MP had sought further investigations into the woman’s claims, which led to the court calling for DNA profiling.

When the matter was listed for trial in March last year, Mr Shinali sought a stay of the upkeep proceedings pending an inquiry on paternity.

Analysis at the Government Laboratory arrived at the conclusion that the child was fathered by Mr Shinali.