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Whizzkid loses case against his parents


A judge has ordered a 30-year-old man not to refer to his father and mother as his parents on his website.

Mr Anthony Kariuki had infringed on their privacy by insulting them in his autobiography on the site, the judge said.

It contained scurrilous material against his parents and family members, said Mr Justice David Majanja.

He went on: “The document violates the privacy rights of those involved. His father implored the court to direct that the references to the family be removed from the website. Given the nature of the matter, I am inclined to agree with this request in order to obviate the need for further litigation.” 

And he ruled: “The petitioner is directed to remove all references to Esther Mwikali Kimeu, John Mathia Kariuki either directly or indirectly as the petitioner’s parents contained in his autobiography or any other document posted or displayed on the infoyete.com website forthwith.” 

The judge issued the orders while dismissing a petition by Mr Kariuki who had sued his parents for alleged violation of his rights and freedoms.

Mr Kariuki had in his petition claimed he had been tortured by his parents from the time he was aged 12 years up to now.

He had sought court orders to establish how much his parents had spent on him and to establish his paternity.

Mr Justice Majanja however ruled that Mr Kariuki was an adult and therefore his parents had no legal responsibility for him.

“Such responsibility ceased when he became an adult. I found Mr Kariuki (Mathia) honest and at pains to understand why he has been sued yet he has done his best for his son. He expressed clear feelings that he would continue to assist his son whenever possible out of love and affection,” the judge noted.

He ruled that the young Kariuki had not demonstrated to the court how his rights had been violated by his parents.

“The petitioner has not discharged his burden of proving that his rights were violated; resolution of his grievances lies elsewhere,” said the judge.

Affliction

The judge said he was hopeful the young Kariuki and his family would be able to come together to find answers to whatever afflicts him.

Mr Mathia Kariuki denied all allegations leveled against them by his son, saying they had all along made efforts to assist him out of parental love and affection.

He also denied that he had any problem with his son becoming a Protestant while the family remained Catholics.

Mr Kariuki told the court the family was distressed by the allegations made by their son and that his wife has been affected emotionally.

The judge said he considered the petitioner’s parents provided a loving environment for him where he was able to go to a good school and graduate with a degree.

“Without his parents’ love and dedication he would not have gone far,” said the judge.