Kiambu Senator Paul Karungo Thang’wa has suffered a legal blow after the Nairobi High Court dismissed his appeal to stop a child maintenance case seeking more than Sh2.5 million in arrears.
The case was filed by Jackline Kamene, who on September 5, 2024, submitted an application to the children’s court, followed by a Notice to Show Cause dated September 13, 2024. She is demanding Sh2,575,206 in unpaid child support for her 21-year-old daughter.
In a ruling delivered by Justice Helene Namisi, the court found that Senator Thang’wa had not demonstrated any substantial harm or loss that would result from responding to the notice and allowing the trial court to proceed.
“I am not persuaded that the appeal will be rendered nugatory by the mere fact that the applicant will be compelled to respond to the notice to show cause and the trial court proceeds to determine the application on merit,” ruled Justice Namisi.
“The applicant has not demonstrated how he will suffer substantial loss from defending himself before the trial court.”
The children’s court had earlier dismissed Thang’wa’s preliminary objection on November 14, 2024, and directed him to respond to the notice within 14 days.
In response, the senator filed an appeal, claiming that being required to respond would result in significant prejudice and financial loss.
Kamene argued that she had solely financed their daughter’s education through high school, prompting the legal action to recover the alleged arrears.
In a November 22, 2024 affidavit, the daughter stated that her father had consistently supported her and, although the March 15, 2019 court ruling did not compel him to provide for her, he had voluntarily enrolled her in a Nairobi college for a software engineering course and paid her fees until her graduation in September 2024.
She also said she had not authorized anyone to take legal action on her behalf and thanked her father for his support.
However, the daughter reversed her position in a later affidavit dated December 5, 2024, claiming that her father only began financially supporting her in February 2024.
She accused him of violating earlier court directives and stated that her mother was forced to initiate recovery proceedings. She further alleged that the first affidavit had been drafted by her father’s legal team and merely presented to her for signing.
