KDF officer’s widow in trouble for ‘defying’ court order stopping husband's burial
Justice Agnes Nzei ruled that the Johns Hopkins Programme for International Education in Gynecology and Obstetrics (Jhpiego) should pay Dr Judy Kairo the money, the costs of her lawsuit and interest at court rates.
Controversy surrounds the burial of a senior Kenya Airforce officer after a woman who claims to be his wife obtained court orders to stop the process.
Col Flavian Mwangi Waweru’s widow Carol Makele Amanyi is now staring at a contempt proceeding after she proceeded to bury her husband,
This was against the order from the court restraining her from doing so, pending hearing the determination of an application filed by Ms Sharon Kendi Mburugu who sought to be part of the burial plans.
Ms Kendi had on October 6 obtained orders restraining Ms Makele from removing the body from the Kenya Defense Forces Memorial Hospital Funeral Home for burial.
In her application before the court, Ms Kendi claims she was the deceased’s second wife by virtue of having cohabited with him for 12 years. She also claims that had a four-year-old child.
She has accused Ms Makele and some other members of the family of sidelining her in the burial arrangements.
She states that she only came to learn that the officer had another family after his death adding that her efforts to reach out to them have been frustrated.
She claims that Ms Makele and other family members have refused to allow her and her child to participate in the burial process.
“I have settled apprehension that the intended burial arrangement without giving me an audience is intended to distance me and my child with the resultant effect of undermining the best interest of my child,” stated Ms Kendi.
She sought to have samples taken from the body of the deceased to be taken for DNA test to confirm the child’s paternity.
In the orders issued on October 10, Senior Resident Magistrate A. Ogonda certified the matter urgent and issued orders of temporary injunction restraining Ms Makele from removing the body from the mortuary for burial pending inter parties hearing of the application.
However, the former KDF officer was buried in his Bital farm in Kariamu, Ol Kalou sub-county within Nyandarua County.
Ms Kendi protested the burial and threatened to institute contempt proceedings against Makele.
"The military locked my son and me out and went ahead to dishonour the injunction as well as the family through the wife who was served with the court orders. It is painful that my son could not pay his last respects to his dad with whom they had a very close relationship," said Ms Kendi.
Col Waweru, who was a commandant of the Kenya Air Force (KAF) Training wing at the Moi Airbase in Eastleigh, Nairobi, was found dead in his car moments after he had left the camp at 4:00 pm on September 26.
He was rushed to a nearby health facility but was pronounced dead upon arrival.
Police say the deceased had left the camp and was headed to the city centre moments before his death was reported.
