Husband seeks dissolution of 3-yr-old marriage over threat to life

A 42-year-old civil servant, Mr Oluwafemi Owoeye, on Tuesday, asked an Ado-Ekiti Customary Court to dissolve his three-year-old marriage to his wife, Abigail.

The petitioner, a resident of Araromi street, Iluomoba-Ekiti, had approached the court for dissolution of the union on grounds of threat to life, lack of respect and frequent fighting.

He told the court that the respondent,  who he met in 2013,  had a son for him on Feb.12, 2016 although there were no formal marriage rites between them.

‎The petitioner told the court that the respondent often threatened to stab him to death with bottles whenever they had any misunderstanding.

He further told the court that the respondent often visits his second wife ‎at home to threaten her.

‎The petitioner assured the court that he would be paying  N4,000 as monthly feeding allowance for his child‎ through the court.

But Abigail, a  trader,  denied all the allegation levelled against her by the petitioner.

Abigail told the court that she and the petitioner had been living separately since May 2017, adding that he had not been performing his duties as a responsible husband.

The respondent said she had never threatened the petitioner with bottles,  alleging that it was the petitioner who ‎deliberately abandoned her and their child.

She explained that since her son was born, the petitioner had only given her N300, adding that he never bothered to pay for her delivery, child medical bills and food.

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The respondent prayed the court to dissolve the marriage and compel the petitioner to be responsible for the education bills of his child.

She also requested for N15,000 as monthly feeding allowance for the child.

The respondent called a witness, her  87-year-old father, Joseph Oladele who claimed the petitioner impregnated his daughter and abandoned her to suffer.

The President of the court, Mrs Olayinka Akomolede, after hearing from both parties, adjourned the case till  March 1  for judgment.(NAN)