The wife of an Eldoret politician and farmer has rejected a divorce case filed by her husband, saying there are no reasons to part with him after 51 years of marriage.
Josephine, second wife of Jackson Kibor, filed a response in the court, saying she had no differences with the 82-year-old politician to warrant the divorce. Through lawyer Amos Magut, she denied all the allegations made by Kibor against her. She said they have been living in harmony since they got married.
Kibor filed a divorce case at a court in Eldoret, seeking to end the marriage with Josephine, 67. He accused her of desertion, cruelty and interfering with his ownership of 800 acres in Kipkabus, Uasin Gishu county.
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But Josephine links the dispute between them to a demand by Kibor to be allowed to sell part of their land, which she rejected. “Kibor married his third wife Naomi in 1975 and moved to live with her. In 2002, he married Yunita and moved to live with his latest flame at Kebenes. But he has been making frequent visits to his matrimonial home at Kipkabus and Josephine has thus not deserted the home,” Josephine says in her affidavit.
Kibor wife Josphine in court on Friday
But during the hearing on Friday, Kibor told senior principal magistrate Charles Obulutsa he has not spent time with Josephine for 30 years and wants the court to cancel their marriage certificate issued in 1965. “She is my wife, but I have not slept in the house I built for her for the last 30 years. She does not respect me and she has been abandoning the farm for long, causing the death of my livestock and chickens,” Kibor said.
Lawyer Magut said problems started after Kibor married Yunita. “Kibor’s petition is without basis and is merely founded on malice and blackmail to force Josephine to accept the sale of their matrimonial home at Kipkabus,” Josephine’s reply reads.
She said she has never committed adultery, cruelty or desertion against Kibor. “The case has no legal and factual basis and should be dismissed with costs,” Josephine argues.
Kibor on Friday also accused Josephine of imposing a caveat on the land to bar him from selling it. “I married her after I had already bought the land, which is registered in my name. She cannot stop me from selling the land and I will still sell it because its mine. She did not come with the land or anything when I married her,” he said. Kibor said he had four wives and three are alive. He said, only Josephine causes him problems.
The hearing of the case continues on September 9.