Did Shikuku’s son forge Raila’s signature over 100-acre land?

The late Martin Shikuku is probably rolling in his grave as his family remains locked in a fierce battle over a prime piece of land.

Trouble is brewing in his home over allegations of forgery in the fight for control of a 100-acre parcel in Kiminini, Trans Nzoia County.

One of his sons, Emmanuel, allegedly forged the signatures of former Prime Minister Raila Odinga and ex-Kenya Wildlife Service boss Richard Leakey in a bid to inherit his father’s estate.

Mr Odinga and Mr Leakey are listed as the two witnesses in a contested will that allegedly granted Emmanuel the land, and authority to act as administrator and executor of the former politician’s estate.

Mr Leakey has now denied witnessing any will, thrusting the Shikukus into the growing list of influential families dogged by messy succession wars that play out in the public gallery.

Fresh filings in court have challenged the will that Emmanuel presented to obtain control of his father’s estate, and which would give him power to evict the rest of the family from the farm.

Shikuku succumbed to prostate cancer on August 22, 2012 at the Texas Cancer Centre in Hurlingham after a 12-year battle with the disease. 

He had three wives – Dolly Achieng’ Shikuku, Frida Nafuna Shikuku and Beverlyn Ongecha Ngaah – and 16 children. Beverlyn, Dolly and six children had died earlier. 

Shikuku allegedly died without a will but Emmanuel, from his first marriage, claims the former Butere MP authored a letter on September 16, 1996 that dictated how his property would be distributed.

Claims of forgery

His surviving widow, Frida, has challenged the letter, arguing that it’s a forgery aimed at locking out several members of the family from their fair share of the estate. She’s supported by other children identified as Jacob, Stephen, Martha and Jacinta.

Frida still lives on the Kiminini land but now risks being evicted by her stepson, who has obtained court orders that give him total control of the estate.

Pleadings filed by Frida and the four children have revealed that Emmanuel did not attend Shikuku’s funeral after “having voluntarily elected not to pay his last respects to him”.

Stephen argues that Emmanuel secretly went to court to seek administration authority and only informed other family members of the proceedings after obtaining orders.

“It is after Emmanuel obtained the grant herein that he sent messages to one of the beneficiaries threatening to seal off the family home and evict my mother therefrom. Emmanuel has also hidden a Nissan Patrol that forms part of the estate,” he says in court papers.

Stephen is seeking to be included as an administrator to represent Frida’s family. Jacob also wants to be included as an administrator to represent the interests of children born by the third wife, Beverlyn.

Stephen has filed, as evidence, communication between Emmanuel and one of their sisters, only identified as Martha.

In the text messages, Emmanuel is insistent that Shikuku only had one wife and that the letters of administration granted by Justice Aggrey Muchelule “cannot be challenged”.

He insists that children from other Shikuku households must conduct DNA tests and “prove their mothers’ marriage” to the former politician before being considered for inheritance.

Succession process

On February 21, Justice Muchelule granted Emmanuel authority to execute the will.

The judge’s decision followed Emmanuel’s insistence that Shikuku only married Dolly Achieng and that the couple had four children – Emmanuel, Sylvano, Lucy and Martina. Martina died in 2016.

Interestingly, Martina’s obituary lists Beverlyn and Frida as stepmothers, and their children as her stepsiblings.

Frida claims Emmanuel secretly obtained powers of administration, yet the law provides for the inclusion of all wives and children in the succession process.

The will, allegedly drawn by Shamalla & Company Advocates, says Emmanuel “shall inherit the Kiminini land with every asset on it”. It hosts the family home, a farm with crops and animals, tractors and cars.

The other properties shall be shared amongst his sons, and seemingly excludes his four daughters, who are still alive.

The only legal practitioner practicing as Shamalla & Company Advocates is renowned lawyer Jennifer Shamalla, an expert in family law. She has, however, distanced herself from the document, saying Shikuku was not her client.

In 1996, when the contested will was allegedly drawn, Ms Shamalla was practicing as Jennifer Mary Shamalla & Company Advocates.

Her father, Japhet Galagati Shamalla, was running Shamalla & Company Advocates. He died on December 3, 2014.

Authenticity of will

Mr Leakey’s bombshell now casts doubt on the authenticity of the will. In a letter filed as evidence in court, Mr Leakey says the signature on the will is his, but that he did not append it on the document.

“I have been shown a photocopy of the purported will left by the late Martin Shikuku. I can confirm that whilst the signature that is on the document is mine, I did not ever sign the document and it is a forgery. I assume a photocopy of my signature was lifted from somewhere and used. I have never signed as a witness to a will left by the late Martin Shikuku,” said Mr Leakey.

Lawyers acting for Frida, Jacob, Stephen, Martha and Jacinta have also written to Mr Odinga’s lawyers seeking to find out whether or not the former Prime Minister signed on as a witness in the contested will.

They are yet to respond to the letters.

Compared to some of his peers, Shikuku had a rather modest estate. But he was still a wealthy man.

Other than the 100-acre land, he also owned a three-bedroom maisonette in Olympic Estate, Kibra, and a four-bedroom house in Butere. He also had a house in South C, Nairobi.

He also owned two units in Oyster Apartments along Lavington’s Riverside Drive. His securities portfolio only had an undisclosed number of shares in Kenya Power.

He had two bank accounts at Gulf African Bank and a similar number at Standard Chartered Bank. He held other accounts at Barclays Bank (Absa) and Dubai Bank.

While the account balances are not listed in court papers, an audit of Dubai Bank after its collapse in 2015 revealed that Shikuku had a Sh14.9 million balance.

Dubai Bank customers were lucky to receive full refunds on their balances, unlike account holders in other collapsed lenders.

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