A woman from Machakos County who had sought divorce accusing her husband of denying her conjugal rights for over 5 years has suffered a huge blow after court declined to dissolve the customary marriage saying it failed on technicalities.
In a landmark judgement rendered by Magistrate Charles Ondieki, the Court declined the divorce on grounds that a customary marriage which has not been registered is not a marriage to be dissolved.
The Court ruled that all parties to a customary marriage who had not registered their marriage with effect from August 1, 2020, when the Marriage Act 2014 took effect can only petition the court for annulment and not dissolution.
The Court noted that although the couple admitted that they were so married in accordance with the customary rites of the Kamba community, by force of section 12(e) of the Marriage Act, 2014, it follows that that purported marriage was rendered voidable effective August 1, 2020.
According to the Magistrate, failure to show a marriage certificate meant that they could not prove their marriage.
“Turning to the evidence adduced by both parties, this court finds that neither the Petitioner nor the respondent exhibited the documentary evidence contemplated by section 59 of the Marriage Act, 2014,” stated the Magistrate.
