The man stated that his tradition requires a woman who left her husband’s house without notice to swear an oath that she has not had an affair with another.
A 41-year-old man, James Omale, who took his wife, Yetunde to the Igando Customary Court, Lagos, has insisted that she must swear at a village shrine to clear herself of a suspicion of infidelity.
Omale explained to the court that his wife left her matrimonial home for a period of one month, according to his tradition, the woman must swear that she has not an affair with another man if she hopes to return to him.
“She left her matrimonial home for a month to an unknown destination.”
“In my tradition, when a woman leaves her matrimonial home and wants to come back, she must first go to our village to swear that no man has slept with her.”
“My wife left my house without my consent and when she returned, she refused to go to my village instead, she rushed to court to ask for divorce.”
“My wife knows that she is guilty of adultery that is why she is afraid to go to my village to swear,” the self-employed man said, describing his wife as an ingrate.”
According to the aggrieved man, he had made serious investment in his wife, whom he sponsored to the university since her first year.
He claimed Yetunde told him that she was no longer interested in their union after he lost his banking job.
“I sponsored Yetunde from her 100 level to final year. After her graduation, I lost my banking job and she told me she was not interested in the marriage again.”
In her defense, the wife narrated that her husband’s bad behaviour made her leave for parent’s residence for the one month period.
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She explained that he shows her no regard, as he leaves their home without informing her. As a result, she is fed up with the marriage and hopes the court fulfill her request to end it.
“My husband tells me to travel to his village in Benue State to make sacrifice and swear to an oath to prove that no other man had slept with me. He tells me that he always sees a man making love to me in his dream.”
“His elder brother is a herbalist and his wife is currently mad, while his second brother’s wife has been sick for years without solution.”
“They cast spell on the wife of his other elder brother who is now a prostitute. I will never be a victim of their evil plan.”
“My husband always leaves the house without my knowledge and he will never care to call me. Because of his bad behaviour, I went to stay in my parent’s house”, she said.
The court president adjourned the matter to September 6, 2016, for further hearing.
