Court orders woman to allow governor access to child as her urgent case fails

Kericho Governor Erick Mutai. [File]

A court has ordered a woman to allow Kericho Governor Erick Mutai access to their daughter, even as a separate court declined to fast-track her application seeking Sh200,000 monthly support from the governor.

The orders have emerged from two separate court cases involving the governor and the woman over the care, maintenance and access to their daughter, identified in court documents as G.C.

The woman, through lawyer Lydia Gathoni, filed an application dated September 8 seeking urgent orders compelling Mutai to provide financial support and help secure a birth certificate for the child, born in July 2025.

She told the court that she had been the child’s sole caregiver since birth and had met her needs without meaningful assistance from Mutai.

She alleged that the governor had failed to provide parental care and maintenance and had refused to give her a copy of his national identity card, which she said had stalled the child’s birth registration.

The woman said the child remained unregistered more than a year after birth, affecting her right to identity and nationality.

She asked the court to compel Mutai to provide his ID copy and pay Sh200,000 every month for the child’s food, shelter, clothing and general upkeep. She also sought comprehensive medical insurance for the minor.

But Judge Julius Nangea declined to certify the matter as urgent and ordered that Mutai be served.

"The application is not certified as urgent for grant of immediate temporary reliefs,” the judge said in an order dated September 14.

Meanwhile, in a separate case filed by Mutai, a magistrate court has ordered the woman to give the governor access to their daughter through physical visits, video calls and telephone calls.

Mutai filed the case on September 7, accusing the woman of denying him access to the child and relocating with her to her sister’s home in Nakuru.

Nakuru Resident Magistrate Jemimah Moragwa ordered Mutai to provide Sh25,000 a month for the child’s maintenance pending the hearing and determination of the case.

The magistrate also directed the woman to facilitate the governor’s contact with the child and provide him with timely information and updates concerning the minor.

A children’s officer was ordered to investigate the child’s circumstances and file a report in court.

In his affidavit, Mutai alleged that the woman had refused to disclose where she and the child were living and would sometimes go offline, only contacting him when she needed financial assistance.

He claimed she had threatened to brand him a “deadbeat” father and publish his name on social media whenever she sought additional money.

Mutai said he had initially been sending Sh18,000 monthly for the child’s upkeep before increasing the amount to Sh25,000 after the woman complained that it was insufficient.

He said the money was meant to cover expenses including clothing, shelter, entertainment and toys.

Despite the increase, he alleged, the woman continued to restrict his access to the child.