Kibirige and Maculate used to joke that they were a ‘second-hand’ couple with mileage from previous relationships. They each came with 2 children and then gave birth to two more. Last year, Kibirige (who is a truck driver for a big company) came home unexpectedly and found ‘uncle’ Brian sleeping in his bed half naked. Their marriage was never the same so they went to court for a divorce and to Maculate’s shock, Kibirige asked for custody for all the children including the ones she came to the marriage with.
Is this even legal?
WHAT DOES THE LAW SAY?
Under the laws of Uganda, the ideal situation is that a child should stay with their biological parents unless there is a court order that says otherwise or if they are no longer alive or reachable. However, there are cases when courts decide that the child will have to stay or grow up with a stepparent or someone else altogether.
You see the law says when decisions and policies are to be made, they must be in that child’s best interests. So, if the best interest of the child is to stay with a step parent or a relative or someone else.
For example, if a parent is doing something that might cause harm to a child, then the courts may decide that this person is not the best person and give the opportunity to someone who is more qualified like a step parent. For instance, if the biological parent with whom the child primarily resides becomes unable to care for the child due to divorce, separation, incarceration (serving a jail term), or other reasons, the stepparent may petition the court for custody or guardianship.
Source: BarefootLawyers
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