Teresia Matheka, a Kenyan High Court judge, declared that being a housewife should be considered a full-time job. The judge highlighted the statements as she was presiding over a marital property dispute.
She made her comments while reading a ruling in a case in which a divorced woman sought to sell their family property, and the proceeds were divided equally between herself and her ex-husband.
The judge stated it was unfair for courts to rule that a housewife makes no significant contribution to a family’s financial progress. She said that stay-at-home mothers provide full-time services at home and should not consider themselves jobless.
Teresia Matheka contended it was unjust to use visible income and the mindset that one must dig deep into their pocket during the marriage to assess their financial worth.
She said, “It is easy for the spouse working away from home and sending money to lay claim to the whole property purchased and developed with that money by the spouse staying at home and taking care of the children and the family. That spouse will be heard saying that the other was not employed, so they did not contribute anything. Raising children is a full-time job that families pay a person to do and cooking and cleaning. Hence, for a woman in employment who has to balance childbearing and rearing, this contribution must be considered.”
The judge then urged her colleagues to consider the nine months of pregnancy when presiding over matrimonial cases, stating that carrying a pregnancy is equivalent to working, noting that some couples have recently resorted to hiring surrogate mothers to bear children for them.
During the trial, the judge ordered that the property be sold, and the proceeds are divided equally, or that one of the spouses buy out the other by paying half the value of the property to which they are entitled.
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