Raila family tussle: Court orders DNA tests to verify paternity of twins

Fidel Odinga's widow Lwam Getachew Bekele (centre) who is accused by the Odinga family of sidelining twins that Fidel sired with another woman. PHOTO | FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • The family is embroiled in a dispute after the Odingas accused Ms Lwam of sidelining the twins that Fidel sired with another woman.

  • Ida and Winnie hold that Lwam is aware of the two children, but she has chosen to sideline them.

  • Ms Lwam says the birth certificates attached by the Odingas do not show who the father of the twins is, and that they were born six months after Fidel’s death.

A judge has ordered for a DNA test to be conducted on twins allegedly sired by the son of ODM leader Raila Odinga’s son Fidel Castro Odinga to confirm their paternity.

Justice Aggrey Muchelule further directed the family members to cooperate during the extraction of blood samples among other requirements. The parties, including Fidel’s widow Lwam Getachew Bekele, his mother Ida Odinga and sister Winnie were asked to decide where the tests will be conducted.

And although the family wanted the media barred from covering the proceedings, arguing that it was an intrusion to privacy, Justice Muchelule said the matter was brought to an open court and the media was free to report so long as the minors are not mentioned.

The family is embroiled in a dispute after the Odingas accused Ms Lwam of sidelining the twins that Fidel sired with another woman. Ida and Winnie hold that Lwam is aware of the two children, but she has chosen to sideline them.

But despite mentioning the twins, Ida and Winnie say in the same court filings that the child Lwam gave birth to, is the only descendant of Fidel.

Ida and Winnie have also accused Lwam of withdrawing her son with Fidel from formal schooling and denying them access to the child.

In the court filings, Ms Lwam says the birth certificates attached by the Odingas do not show who the father of the twins is, and that they were born six months after Fidel’s death.

“However, should it be proved that the said minors were sired by the deceased, I will include them in the estate. I have never intermeddled with the estate of the deceased person either before or after being issued with the grant of letters of administration intestate,” Lwam adds.

Fidel died without a written a will and had acquired several properties that now sit at the centre of the dispute.

Among the properties is their Karen’s Tipuana Park home, two pieces of land in Kisumu and another in Kajiado, shares in Axum Investments Limited and Ambesa Investments Limited, and four vehicles are the properties revealed to be Fidel’s in the court papers.

Fidel also had seven bank accounts. The only liability revealed in the filings are debts to a credit card issued by Stanbic Bank’s Chiromo branch in Nairobi.

The case will be mentioned on November 13.