A 62-year-old man identified as Jacob Ocholla has claimed to be the late president Mwai Kibaki’s first born son.
Mr. Ocholla moved to court seeking official recognition from Kibaki’s family as well as a piece of the former Head of State’s family estate.
Moreover, through his lawyers Omoke Morara and Peacela Atim, the 62-year-old filed the petition in Nyeri on July 15, 2022 before Justice Florence Muchemi.
Mr. Ocholla wants the court to order Kibaki’s children including; Judy Kibaki, David Kagai, Jimmy Kibaki and Anthony Githinji, to disclose if his name was included in a will he alleges was drafted by the former president before his death.
Additionally, Ocholla is seeking to have the court determine who will be chosen as the administrator of the former head of state’s estate. Further asking for the allocation process to begin as soon as possible.
According to the court document, Ocholla said he feared being excluded from the distribution process.
He further attributed his fear to the fact that he had been ignored by Kibaki’s family before, when he reached out to the on the same issue.
Nonetheless, the Court gave Kibaki’s family 21 days to accept or refuse the probate of the alleged will or show cause why letters of administration of Kibaki’s estate should not be granted to Ocholla.
“Take notice that in default of your so appearing and accepting probate of the said will, this court may proceed to grant letters of administration of the said estate to Jacob Ocholla Mwai, your absence notwithstanding,” reads a letter referenced ‘citation to accept and refuse probate’.
The case is set to be mentioned on September 19, 2022.
Who Is Jacob Ocholla?
Jacob Ocholla, was born in Nairobi’s Kaloleni estate on July 22, 1960.
He claims to have grown up not knowing that he was Kibaki’s son.
Moreover, during an interview with Standard Digital in May, the 62-year-old stated that he came to know about his father a year after the death of his adoptive father. His foster father, he said, hailed from the Luo community, hence the name Ocholla.
“When I turned 21, the person I knew as my father died. A year later, my mom disclosed to me that the man who had raised me was not my biological father. She told me she was going to talk to my father and introduce me to him, which she did after a month or so,” Ocholla said then.
Furthermore, Ochola claims he interacted with Kibaki on several occasions at Karen County Club after which his mother introduced him to the former Head of State at Amboseli Grill on June 21, 1982.
Also Read: State Funeral For Former President Mwai Kibaki