Court dissolves 18-year-old marriage over abandonment

An Idi-Ogungun Customary Court, Agodi, in Ibadan, on Friday dissolved the 18-year-old marriage between one Fatimo Taiwo, 35, and her husband, Lukman, on ground of abandonment.

The President of the court, Chief Mukaila Balogun, said the court was left with no option than to dissolve the marriage since the defendant had urged the court to uphold the divorce request of his wife.

Balogun said that failure of the husband to defend the allegations brought before the court further proved that he had made up his mind to end the union.

He, therefore, dissolved the marriage and gave custody of the only child of the union to the plaintiff.

The president ordered the defendant to pay N4,000 monthly allowance for the upkeep of the child.

Fatimo had prayed the court to order her husband to be responsible for the upkeep of the only child of the union.

In her testimony before the court on Friday, the plaintiff alleged that her husband was insensitive to her welfare.

“He preferred spending his money on other women so, I urge the court to separate us and direct him to perform his role as a father of the only child between us,” the plaintiff pleaded.

Responding, Lukman, 39, said he would not say anything regarding the allegations leveled against him, but urged the court to uphold the request of his wife.