• Jane Wambui Kiragu wants the case filed by her half-sister Brenda Nyambura Kiragu, one of the three children born out of wedlock, be dismissed.
• Their father was the majority shareholder in six companies with accounts at I&M, Cooperative and Consolidated banks.
One of Nginyo Kariuki's children has rejected claims by her half-sister that she was wasteful of her father's multibillion-shilling estate.
Jane Wambui Kiragu, the late politician's oldest daughter, wants a case filed by her half-sister Brenda Nyambura Kiragu dismissed.
Nyambura is one of Nginyo's three children born out of wedlock.
Both Wambui and Nyambura are lawyers.
Nyambura has challenged her father's will, complaining she was locked out. She claims that her stepmother, Margaret Wangari Nginyo, and her children were illegally withdrawing money from the estate.
Nginyo was a majority shareholder in six companies with accounts at I&M, Cooperative and Consolidated banks. The companies include Pema Holdings, Nginyo Investments and Mtwapa Holdings.
Nyambura accused the banks of allowing Margaret and some of her children, who are minority shareholders in the firms, to withdraw money from corporate accounts without board approval, including the vote by the deceased’s estate that automatically inherited his shares.
In her response, Wambui said the directors of companies passed a resolution approving payments from the accounts.
“As far as Nginyo Investments Limited is concerned I am advised by the 4th and 5th respondents (Margaret and Silas Kariuki) that the directors did pass a resolution approving the paying out of monies from the company's account to settle the applicant’s (Nyambura’s) legal fees, which were erroneously billed to the company as opposed to the estate of the deceased,” Wambui said.
The passing of the resolution, she said, was necessitated by her step sister’s refusal to bill her legal fees for work done on behalf of their late father as required by law. She said Nyambura opted to bill Nginyo Investment Limited.
The second resolution passed by Pema Holdings Limited was to facilitate the continuance of the Kiambu construction, which their father had commenced during his lifetime.
“The deceased's accounts from which project funds were drawn were frozen upon his demise,” Wambui said and explained that this necessitated directors of Pema to resolve to lend the estate funds to facilitate the completion of the project.
"Following the demise of our father Lawrence Nginyo Kariuki with the threat of possible improper freezing of the company accounts, the 4th, 5th, 7th respondents and I opened two bank accounts to facilitate the operations of the company and continuance of the construction in Kiambu,” Wambui said.
“I wish to state that contrary to the applicant’s (Nyambura's) claim, there has been no misuse of the companies’ funds.”
Nyambura wants the court to nullify her father’s will of June 13, 2014, which excluded her and the two other children born out of wedlock. She further wants an audit conducted to unearth any hidden assets their father owned.