Why Kabi WaJesus Cannot Be Jailed For Sleeping With Cousins

The YouTuber recalled of a 2021 incident whereby he was exposed by his cousin for siring a child with her

Why Kabi WaJesus Cannot Be Jailed For Sleeping With Cousins
Content creator Kabi WaJesus. /INSTAGRAM

Content creator Kabi WaJesus on Monday, July 4 admitted to having slept with many of his cousins before getting saved.

During a recent couples and singles kesha, the YouTuber recalled of a 2021 incident whereby he was exposed by his cousin for siring a child with her.

He however claimed that it was a non-issue, saying that she was among the multiple family members he had sexual relations with.

Kabi WaJesus with his sister, Veronicah Kabi. /INSTAGRAM

"If not all, most of you here know what happened last year, and there was an incident of a cousin of mine coming out, and she was saying we slept together and had a child. And the reason, for me, before I got born again, this was not an issue, and she's not the first one.

"I have slept with so many others, what are you talking about? Huyo mwenye alipata mimba sasa ndio mnajua (The one who was pregnant, that's the only one everybody knows),” he admitted.

Kabi is now born again and a father of three; two with whom he shares with his wife, Milly WaJesus, and one, baby Abby, with his cousin.

He finally admitted to siring baby Abby with his cousin in May 2021, following several denials and insisting that the child was his niece.

"The lady you see in this picture is my cousin, and the baby we took this picture with is called Abby – she is my niece. How can someone say you are the father of your cousin's child?" he posed in a YouTube video which was taken down.

Kabi then conducted a DNA test that proved that he was the father, before declaring that he would take responsibility for his actions.

"I wish to confirm that yesterday, paternity results were issued that confirmed that I am the biological father of the child. The results confirm that, in 2013 (which was before I got born again and married), I sired Abby," he stated then.

Having sexual intercourse with relatives is termed incest and is regarded as a taboo, one of the most widespread social ills across the world, and within multiple cultures, both present and past. The act has even been considered in many societies as illegal, and in some instances, it can be punishable by death. 

It is however a different story in Kenya, as marriage between cousins and sexual intercourse between them is deemed legal. A 2016 ruling by High Court judge James Makau, in an appeal where a man was contesting a conviction of alleged incest with a cousin by the Magistrates Court, found that the Sexual Offences Act does not mention a cousin among the list of relatives under the offence of incest.

The judge argued that the National Assembly did not leave out the clause on cousins by intention but by the fact that in some cultures in Kenya - such as Hindus and Muslims - and some African communities, sexual acts between cousins are not criminalised.

"This means it is permissible to have sex with a cousin. My understanding of the said section (Section 20(1) of the Sexual Offences Act) is that if any sexual act takes place between two cousins, that does not amount to incest within the meaning of the provisions of the Sexual Offences Act," he ruled.

However, from a scientific angle, incest can have serious consequences, both from a psychological and sociological aspect. Debra Lieberman, an evolutionary psychologist at the University of Hawaii, warned that close genetic relatives run the risk of having offspring that have a reduced chance of survival.

An image of a court gavel. /iSTOCK