This archive report was first published on 15 January 2020.
On January 9, 2020, a disturbing video surfaced on social media showing a 10-year-old girl wailing and clinging to her father as her mother attempted to take her at the Mwingi Law Courts. The Judiciary has since come out to clarify the circumstances surrounding the case.
According to a statement released by the Judiciary on Twitter, the court granted equal custody to both parents on September 12, 2019. The arrangement stipulated that the mother would stay with the girl as she attends school, while the father would have custody during the school holidays.
The arrangement was set to take effect from December 1, 2019, but the father refused to hand over the child on that date. The mother subsequently returned to court on December 15, 2019, seeking orders that he be compelled to do so.
As the Judiciary's deputy director in charge of public affairs and communication, Catherine Wambui, explained, 'More push and pull followed, but on January 8, the couple re-appeared in court. The father was to bring the child the following day, January 9, 2020, and the children's officer was to oversee the handover and ensure the girl had the necessary counselling and preparation.'
It was on January 9, 2020, that the video was taken and uploaded on social media, with the intention of painting the Judiciary in a bad light and reversing the decision of a court unprocedurally, Wambui added.
The Judiciary's statement comes in response to media reports that the girl's mother abandoned her when she was one-and-a-half years old, but resurfaced when the child was 9 years old to claim custody.
As the Judiciary noted, 'In this particular case, the social media narrative seems to suggest the mother was away for many years, and, therefore, should not have been given custody. It is noted that all matters and angles of the case were canvassed before a competent court. Moreover, a notable aspect is that the child actually lives with her paternal grandparents, since her father works over 70Kms away, yet her mother is alive, able and willing to stay with her.'
