Former National Assembly Speaker Kenneth Merende won’t have to pay monthly upkeep to a woman he has denied ever cohabiting with as man and wife.
Marende was in September 2013 directed by a court to pay Sh35,000 as monthly stipend to Jennifer Nkowua after the court ruled in her favour.
Jennifer has one child. The court ruled that Marende should pay school fees for the child.
Jennifer had claimed that Marende had failed to pay school fees and other family needs.
The court directed that Marende pay her Sh35, 000 a month. But Marende appealed the ruling and the High Court has now partly upheld and partly dismissed the initial orders by the trial court.
Marende stated that the trial court misdirected itself in determining that he had not disclosed his income and disregarded his replying affidavits on issues not proved by contrary evidence.
In the court papers, Marende further stated that he was not in salaried employment and had financial burden of supporting six children and aged parents, thus taking the child to a boarding school would not be financially viable for him.
He added that Jennifer could sustain both herself and the child and that she was dishonest in not disclosing her financial capacity, claiming he had set up a business for her and that she had vacated their home with, among other things, a car.
In his submission, Marende stated he never cohabited with Jennifer as husband and wife as he lacked capacity since he was in statutory marriage to his wife.
Marende’s first wife, Dr Lavender Marende passed on in April, 2005, but they had long been separated at the time of her death. He married his second wife in 2002 under the Bunyore customary laws but separated in 2008, five months after becoming Speaker.
Jennifer neither filed a response to the appeal nor appeared in court to defend the matter hence the latest decision.