A fresh court battle for the multi-billion-shilling estate left behind by the late Kenyan Cabinet Minister John Michuki has erupted.
The tussle pits Michuki’s last-born daughter Yvonne Wanja and her siblings Anne Wanjiru and Fred Chege.
Ms. Wanja has filed a fresh court case seeking to get what she claims to be rightfully hers.
Since the death of their father and mother in 2012, Wanja has insisted that her elder brother and sister have refused to give the true accounts of assets left behind by their parents.
In her suit, Wanja wants the court to revoke a document allowing Wanjiru and Chege to manage their parents’ estate.
The financial analyst has asked the court to revoke grant probate awarded to the two in the management of the estate that comprises of Cargen House on Nairobi’s Harambee Avenue, Windsor Hotel, and Gateway Insurance Company among others.
She further notes that Wanjiru and Chege have failed to disclose their mother’s June 7th, 2012 last wish, which makes full disclosure of the assets.
She also accuses the two of mismanaging the estate, leading to huge debts.
“The respondents have willingly failed to diligently administer the estate. They have hoodwinked the beneficiaries that they wish the estate to be distributed. All businesses under the estate have performed worse, year after year and debts have increased,” Wanja says in court documents.
“The liabilities of Nairobi Golf Hotels have mushroomed to Sh625 million.”
She further accuses her elder sister of denying her access to the family’s probate lawyer Njoroge Regeru and Company Advocates.
“The first respondent conspired to frustrate my mother’s wish to have her meet her lawyer Raphael Ngethe in August 2012 to execute her wishes into a new will despite numerous requests,” Wanja asserts.
She also accuses the two of forcing their dying mother to sign some unknown documents against her will.
Wanja says her mother laid out the basis for the family estate’s settlement before her death and listed Nicholas Ng’ang’a (current Safaricom chairman), Martin Michuki, Chege and Wanja as the tentative trustees.
“Shortly after my mother’s death, the respondent retrieved the original copy of the last wishes from my mother’s file at Ndung’u, Njoroge and Kwach Advocates. She later forwarded to me a copy of the said last wishes which differed with what she had shown my siblings,” Wanja claims.
In their replying affidavit, Wanjiru and Chege have denied Wanja’s claims stating that they have not excluded any of the estate’s beneficiaries or failed to supply information relating to the estate.
“We can only distribute to the applicant her share of the estate upon confirmation of the grant. In addition and as demonstrated in the February 11, 2019 affidavit, we already made available to the beneficiaries part of the money held in the deceased’s bank accounts,” the two present.
“The balances have been shared and openly discussed with the beneficiaries. The said funds are only a fraction of the deceased’s assets as the majority of assets are in the form of stocks in companies and parcels of land.”
“It is apparent that the applicant is not interested in the confirmation of grant but rather in picking fights. The content of the supporting affidavits is malicious and untrue. The same is intended to tarnish the respondents’ reputation. The first respondent was not aware of our mother’s last instructions to her lawyer.”
Last year, Wanja filed an application demanding a sixth (in shares) of her father’s multi-billion estate.
Michuki’s other assets as documented in court include 1,536 shares at Kenya Airways, 10,400 at Ndarugu Plantations, 502 at Silver Homes Ltd, 502 at Coots Holdings, 502 at Snipe Investments, 20 at Kangema Farmlands Ltd, 100 at Agricultural and Industrial Holdings, 56,900 at Mountain Lodge, one at Mika Estate, one at Nairobi Golf Hotels Kenya Ltd, 12,500 at New Kenshoes Company Ltd, 2,000 at Fairview Investments, one at Highland Tea Company and two accounts at Standard Chartered Bank, Koinange Street branch.
The late politician’s other children are Martin Michuki, Francis Murai and Sheila Muriugi.