Akinyi’s back, fighting and kicking away

It’s 11.45am at the Deepwest Resort Club. Anthony Chinedu and Joyce Akinyi, the estranged couple exchange bitter words and a blow is thrown to mark a return to their feuding ways.And this time, the feud is about property.

Ms Akinyi, who only two days ago arrived in the country after a spell in an Indian jail, announced her return with a dramatic confrontation with her estranged Nigerian husband, Chinedu.
The scene, reminiscent of the famous love-hate scenes of Nigerian movies so popular in Kenyan, lasted the better part of Tuesday.

The supporting cast of Kenyans followed every unfolding scene from the fence of the club at the centre of ownership tussle between the couple. It was a free movie after all, and not even verbal threats from Akinyi’s male relatives would force wananchi to leave the scene.

Journalists, eager to capture every move, clicked their cameras away, recording every action.

The daylight drama was the climax of a night-long standoff the previous day when Akinyi stormed the club to reclaim it from an investor Mr Chinedu apparently leased it. Things happen while you are away.

A police operation that lasted four hours curtain-raised the main drama. Lang’ata police officer Patrick Mang’oli, said: “We were looking for anything and everything, including drugs.”

The goods — motorcycle tyres and tubes removed from the room and strewn on the parking yard — were clearly not what police were after. Still, they were screened for drugs and turned inside out — in vain.

All the while the protagonists, Akinyi and Chinedu, sat at opposite ends of the club. Chinedu at a tent facing the entrance where Akinyi was. With three male companions, Chinedu seemed unmoved, while Akinyi talked, occasionally, with the police carrying out the search.

Kenya Revenue Authority

Two cars were also towed away from the parking lot, destination Kenya Revenue Authority, for investigation on whether duty was paid. Similarly, the tyres and tubes were loaded into a KRA lorry. “Akinyi will want to use every opportunity to fix me. What have they got?” asked Chinedu, as the police left.

The exit of police heralded another round of drama, with Chinedu saying: “Akinyi should have looked for me. Storming the place was the most unfortunate thing she should have done,” he said.

But Akinyi, who had declined to be interviewed, paced towards Chinedu and proceeded to slap him on the head. Her relatives, however, restrained her

“Share what? I cannot share my property with him. Where is the evidence (of joint ownership)?” fumed Akinyi. She accused Chinedu of illegally leasing out the property which she said was hers.

A composed Chinedu laughed off the verbal tirade. He was unmoved and remained seated as she yelled.

“I’m back and he should know he will not succeed in his schemes. He took advantage of my absence but now I’ll take what’s mine,” declared Akinyi, whose flair for English language was impressive.

The Nigerian at the centre of a deportation court battle said the only solution was sharing property. He vowed never to surrender all his property, saying that even if he were deported, he would still claim part of the wealth.

The rival couple has court cases relating to their various properties and custody of their two children.

After she calmed down, Akinyi talked of her experience in India. She said apart from lack of freedom, she found the prison comfortable. “Indian jails are wonderful. There’s water and food and they are not congested. You get everything,” she said.

She was arrested together with former MP Raphael Wanjala for breaking currency laws in India. They were detained and later freed on bail.

The two had travelled to India via Entebbe, Uganda, last year and were seized at Indira Gandhi International Airport for carrying large sums of money — $100,000 (Sh7.5 million) — in cash. Indian law demands that cash worth more than $5,000 (Sh375,000) be declared at the airport and a declaration certificate obtained.

On Tuesday, Akinyi said there were no charges preferred against them and that the money was for business.

The confrontation resembled a car chase involving the estranged couple in the streets of Nairobi last year and could well be a pointer at things to come.