Court stops Mark Too’s burial as lawyer seeks cause of death
A court in Eldoret on Friday issued temporary orders stopping the burial of former politician Mark Too slated for Monday.
Chief Magistrate Nicodemus Moseti gave the orders after lawyer Simon Lilan, who claims to be a personal and legal friend to Mr Too, sought court orders to establish the cause of his death.
Among those named in the suit are Mr Too’s second wife Ms Sophie Chelimo, Lee Funeral Home where the body has been preserved, funeral committee chairman Mr Jacob Yego, Kapseret MP Oscar Sudi and Attorney General Githu Muigai.
“The defendants, their agents and or servants or anybody on their behalf be and hereby barred by way of temporary injunction from collecting or burying the body without the plaintiff’s, the widows or close relatives and further that the body be buried at the first wife’s residence (Mary Jepkemboi Too) and not elsewhere bearing inter-parties hearing,” read the orders issued by Magistrate Moseti.
CONTEMPT OF COURT
The magistrate warned the notice was valid and any party disobeying it would be guilty of contempt of court and may be committed to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or a fine or both.
Mr Moseti set inter-party hearings on January 12. Mr Too was to be buried at his Maziwa Farm in Kapseret, Uasin Gishu County.
The case was the third to be filed since his death.
On Friday, over 1,000 squatters filed another suit to stop Mr Too’s burial on a 25,000-acre farm valued at Sh5 billion, whose ownership will be determined on January 27.
REQUIEM MASS
The case was filed at the High Court in Nairobi as a requiem mass for the former Assistant Minister went on at the Africa Inland Church in Milimani, Nairobi.
Lawyer William Arusei for the Sirikwa Squatters Group filed the case under a certificate of urgency urging Justice Antony Ombwayo to stop the burial on the disputed land to avoid an embarrassing scenario where the family will be forced to exhume the body later.
The squatters told the court that retired President Daniel Moi allocated them the land in 1998 after it was surrendered back to the government by the Lonrho Agribusiness (East Africa Limited).
Meanwhile, a woman, who had moved to court to stop the burial withdrew the case.
Lawyer Tom Ojienda for the Too family and Mr Danstan Omari for Ms Fatuma Ramadhan Hassan recorded a settlement of the case before Justice Aggrey Muchelule.
