The demand for a DNA test has been filed by Chepkoech Too at the High Court in Eldoret as part of the ongoing succession case over Mark Too’s more than Sh7 billion estate.
Justice Eric Ogolla on Tuesday directed the matter be heard on September 22. The family failed to resolve the issue out of court.
Chepkoech, born out of wedlock, had asked the High Court to determine her paternity because she wants to be listed as a beneficiary of the estate. It includes thousands of acres, real estate and urban plots in the country.
Through lawyer Diana Ndirangu, Chepkoech claims she has the right to be included among Too’s children so she inherits part of the estate.
When the matter came up before Justice Ogolla, the lawyer said if the court orders a DNA test, the Too family may be forced to exhume his body to retrieve samples.
The Nominated MP, who was powerful during President Daniel Moi's regime, died on December 31, 2016, at age 60.
He was buried at his second wife’s home at Sirikwa farm in Kapseret near the Eldoret International Airport.
The family owns more than 25,000 acres in the area.
Lawyer Ndirangu said they had been demanding DNA tests be done with samples from her client matched against those of Too’s other children.
“If the family will not agree to this, then we might have to go for exhumation of the body so we get samples for DNA," Ndirangu said.
Too's widows — Mary and Sophia —are the joint administrators of the estate. They had earlier agreed to resolve the matter with Chepkoech out of court.
They later changed their position after Chepkoech made what they termed extreme demands.
However, the two widows last year had accepted two sons of Too born out of wedlock. They are Ali Mark Too and Mohammed Bakari Too.
They said they did not know Chepkoech.
“We had desired to negotiate with Chepkoech to ascertain her status as a child and a possible beneficiary but we failed to agree because of extreme demands by her," one widow told the court.
Following the DNA dispute, the family has failed to distribute property among the beneficiaries.
“Distribution of the estate of the deceased cannot go on until a proper DNA test of my client is determined so we know if she is a biological child of the deceased,” Ndirangu said.
Professor Tom Ojienda is representing Too’s widows. On Tuesday Ojienda was not in court and his efforts to have the matter heard virtually were rejected by Chepkoech’s lawyer.
Too’s estate is spread across the country, with investments in Muthaiga, Lavington and Milimani in Nairobi, Nakuru, Elgon View in Eldoret and other places.
He had huge farms in Nakuru, Uasin Gishu, Nandi and Trans Nzoia counties, among them Kabilo, Sirikwa, Chemoset, Kosirai, Kitale, Kiminda, Savani, Ngeria, Kapcheserut, Ngechek, and Kurgung.
His other properties included 10 trailers, 10 tractors, 11 vehicles and shares in six companies.
Apart from his children allegedly born out of wedlock, his first wife Mary had four children while Sophia has three.
(Edited by V. Graham)
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