A businesswoman, Adebusayo Oyinade, has secured a court order ending her union with her estranged husband, Kazeem, after 23 years of abandonment.
Oyinade, who filed the petition at the Mapo Grade A Customary Court in Ibadan, explained that her husband left her and their children in 2014 after traveling to the United States and had since refused to make contact.
“My children and I have suffered emotional and psychological torture due to his actions. We started our relationship as students of The Polytechnic, Ibadan, in 2002. We had our introduction ceremony and began living together, but he never paid my bride price,” she told the court.
She added that in June 2020, Kazeem changed his Facebook profile status to “divorced” and posted pictures with another woman, whom he introduced as his wife. According to her, he blocked all means of communication, ignoring efforts by her family and relatives to reconcile them.
The court records showed that Kazeem was absent throughout the proceedings, despite several adjournments to give him the opportunity to defend himself.
Delivering judgment, the President of the Court, Mrs. S.M. Akintayo, ruled that the relationship between Oyinade and Kazeem was mere cohabitation and not a valid marriage under Nigerian law, since the payment of bride price—an essential requirement—was never fulfilled.
Akintayo explained that because a legally recognized marriage never existed, there was no marriage to dissolve. She, however, ordered both parties to separate in the interest of peace.
The court awarded custody of the two children to Oyinade and directed Kazeem to take responsibility for their welfare and education. Additionally, the court restrained him from harassing, threatening, or interfering in the private life of the petitioner.