March 4, 2010 – If you thought you had heard the last of Esther Arunga, I guess you haven’t… She has just announced that she is now officially married to Quincy Timberlake (?) after conducting a civil ceremony yesterday.

She claims she has obtained a certificate and has officially changed her name to Esther Adongo Timberlake.

”I am so much in love with Quincy and that’s why have officially married him,” she said at a press conference in Jazz Maestro Joseph Hellon’s house in Runda… Quincy however, is still in police custody. When asked about it, Esther says it is allowed for someone to conduct a marriage even with a partner who is convicted in prison or jail.

Esther meanwhile adds that she’s planning to sue a renown psychiatrist who sedated her against her will and kept her incarcerated for five days yet she was not insane.

She said she is seeking Sh300 million in damages and stated that she will also sue her parents for taking her there.

The former TV presenter has also vowed to seek Sh30 million from respective media houses that she claims ‘defamed’ her.

She has now obtained court orders restraining her parents from interfering with her life.

Elsewhere, the government is expected to shed light on the controversial Finger of God Church and Arunga’s arrest next Thursday.

Imenti Central MP Gitobu Imanyara raised the issue in Parliament and demanded that the Internal Security Ministry issue a statement on the regulation of churches in the country.

Gitobu further wants clarity the circumstances under which the police arrested Arunga and church founder Hellon.

Pastor Hellon and others associated with the church have since been charged with belonging to an unlawful society.

-Capital Lifestyle

The old and the young. A recent study shows that although older men were responsible for pregnancies among young girls, they threatened to kill their own daughters who got children out of wedlock. Photo/FILE

By Gatonye Gathura

Older philandering men are a major cause of unsafe abortions among young girls in Central Province.

A study by researchers from Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya found that although older men were responsible for unwanted pregnancies among young girls, they also threatened to kill their daughters who got children out of wedlock.

The study published in October, was carried out by researchers from the universities of Uyo and Witwatersrand in Nigeria and South Africa, respectively, and the Nairobi-based African Population and Health Research Centre.

Titled Men, Women and Abortion in Central Kenya: A Study of Lay Narratives, the findings were published in the Medical Anthropology journal.

One of the respondents, only identified as Samuel, told the researchers: “A young girl may be afraid of the father, who is very harsh… always threatening saying ‘if you bring a child here I will kill you.’

“So when she gets pregnant she goes for abortion.”

The study, which was carried out among men and women in Nyeri District, cites the economic burden of bringing up a fatherless child and becoming ineligible for marriage among young girls as the major reasons for abortion.

In the study, women did not advocate or defend abortion, but neither did they condemn it.

Rather, “they recognise it as a strategy for managing the risks of socially unviable motherhood.”

Socially unviable

The men, on the other hand, condemned abortion, viewing it as women’s immoral strategy of concealing their waywardness, unfaithfulness, and promiscuity.

Most of the participating men said the practice was usually carried out behind their backs.

However, the women disputed the view that they hide their abortions from men because it is immoral.

To them, the decision to seek abortions was not only legitimately theirs, but also one that men need not necessarily be informed about.

Unlike similar studies which are mostly academic discourses, this one seeks lay narratives from the man on the street and brings out a male who sees cruelty in the act, but fails to take responsibility for his role in it.

But both men and women of Nyeri agree on one thing — abortion is prevalent, carried out dangerously, and that demand for it will continue to rise.

The authors suggest that Kenyan women will continue to resort to induced abortion, not simply as a form of protection against shame, but primarily as a shield against poverty and loss of economic and marital viability.

“We also note that Kenyan women seeking abortion will likely continue to rely on cheap and poor quality services — those are not only much easier to obtain without involving men but are also much more affordable than the services of qualified personnel.”

Safe abortion

Not surprisingly, the researchers found most participants to be aware that safe abortion services in Kenya exist but the illegality of the action encourages qualified providers to charge exorbitantly, pushing the poor to back street operators.

Source: Daily Nation

Paul, 25, and Ruth Muli, 56, during their wedding at the Rock City Hotel in Nairobi, on Sunday. Photo: Mbugua Kibera /Standard

By Ally Jamah and Njoki Chege

It was a special Valentine’s Day for Paul Muli, 25, who tied the knot to multi-millionaire real estate tycoon Ruth Wanjiru, 31 years his senior.

The couple formalised their three-year relationship in a lavish ceremony in Rock City Hotel in the presence of 250 invited guests, including Wanjiru’s son, 34 and daughter, 23.

They wedded on the poolside surrounded by lush gardens.

“I love my new husband very much and I am so happy that God has answered my prayers after waiting for so long,” gushed the bride.

She planted a generous kiss on Mr Muli’s cheeks as guests broke into spontaneous applause.

Muli appeared in high spirits as he said “I do” to the love of his heart.

“This is the best Valentine’s Day I have celebrated and I am just on top of the world to have Ruth by my side. I love her so much,” said Muli.

Daughter a maid

Interestingly, Wanjiru’s daughter, Sarah, was one of the bridesmaids and even took several photos with the couple. She appeared happy.

“I am also very happy for my mom now has a husband to comfort and keep her company. I think they make a very nice couple,” she said.

Muli’s mother, Hellen, approved her son’s move, saying she believed the couple was sincerely in love.

“The age difference between the two doesn’t matter. I have faith that they will live together,” she said.

The bridegroom runs several businesses in Nairobi, including a printing firm as well as an agency to recruit models for television advertising.

The wedding ceremony was conducted in line with Kikuyu customs, after which an official from the Attorney General’s Chambers conducted the official wedding and issued a certificate to the couple.

Asked about their honeymoon plans, Muli remained silent, saying he wanted to keep it as surprise to his new wife.

-East African Standard

Members of African gay and lesbian communities demonstrate in Nairobi in 2007

MTWAPA, Kenya — Kenya police on Friday arrested five suspected homosexuals in a coastal resort town after hundreds of residents protested over a planned gay wedding, a local official said.

The five were among would-be guests at the wedding, which was meant to be secret. Residents learned about it and alerted the police, who raided a house and nabbed the men.

Homosexuality is illegal in Kenya and it was unclear who was to officiate at the marriage.

Local district official George Matundura said the couple who were to marry escaped from Mtwapa, a vibrant party town to the north of Kenya’s coastal city of Mombasa, where the wedding reception was to be held.

Matundura said the five — aged between 20 and 35 — will “undergo a medical examination before we charge them with homosexuality.”

“We will move swiftly and close down bars which condone gays, lesbians, prostitution and drug abuse in their premises,” he added.

“We are grateful to the public for alerting the police. They should continue cooperating with the police to arrest more.”

Muslim and Christian clerics condemned the planned marriage.

“We cannot allow these young boys to ruin their future through homosexuality,” said Sheikh Ali Hussein of the Council of Imams and Preachers of Kenya. “We shall use all means to curb this vice.”

Bishop Lawrence Chai of the National Council of Churches of Kenya told reporters: “This is immoral and we shall not allow it, especially here in Mtwapa.”

-AFP