Lupita Nyongo's family inheritance drama heats up

The High Court in Kisumu has granted an out-of-court settlement in a case in which Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o has been sued by his nephews over their family inheritance.

Nyong'o and his sister Risper Nyagoy, through their lawyer, sought to have the case settled out of court.

This was granted by Justice Thrispisa Cherere, who directed Nyong'o and Nyagoy to commit through a written document within 14 days.

If the petitioners agree, they will reach an agreement out of court. The court will resume hearings on July 11 if they fail to strike a deal.

Geoffrey Omondi and Kenneth Okuthe sued their uncle Nyong'o and aunt Nyagoy for leaving out some relatives in the list of beneficiaries to their grandfather’s estate.

Omondi and Okuthe said the administrators left out two of their siblings. Omondi is the eldest son of Judith, Nyong'o's deceased sister.

Upon her death, Omondi and her sister Fiona Atieno were taken care of by their grandfather, Hesbon Shimei, who died on November 10, 2006 without a will.

The petitioners say they have never benefitted from his estate.

They say children of Margaret Awuor, another sister of the county chief, have also been left out. They said Nyong'o and Nyagoy concealed crucial information from them. They sought to have the letter of administration annulled.

Nyong'o denied the two were part of beneficiaries. Nyagoy said the two are ungrateful. She said Nyong'o paid their school fees and secured them jobs.

The respondents said the governor and his sister were made the administrators of the estate after the local chief certified that the two and their mother and other siblings were the true beneficiaries.

The applicants are accusing Nyong’o and Nyagoy of concealing important information on confirmation of the grant and not accounting for the estate.

The duo are in court seeking revocation or annulment of the letters of administration.

However in their replying affidavit, Anyang’ Nyong’o and his sister denied their nephews are part of beneficiaries of their late father’s property.

The duo in their replying affidavit dismissed the case as incompetent and intended to paint the family in bad light.

They argued that even though Nyong’o took care of the two nephews after the death of their parents, they were not beneficiaries of Nyongo’s father’s property.

Nyagoy told the court his brother governor Nyong’o made sure the two nephews went to school and even secured them jobs, but have been ungrateful and have not been helping their ailing mother.

“The applicants are not dependents or beneficiaries of Hesborn Shimei’s estate within the Law of Succession Act,” Nyagoy said.

-Faith Matete