A teacher, Mrs Idowu Oluokun, on Tuesday told a Mapo Customary Court in Ibadan to dissolve her 16-year-old marriage to her husband, Oyetunji, instead of sharing him with a second wife.
Idowu, who made the submission in her counter argument before Chief Ademola Odunade, the court’s President, added that her husband was not trust worthy.
She further said that soon after she gave birth to her child, Oyetunji told her that he had married another wife whom his relatives preferred because she was from his community.
“He further told me that he had decided to be shuttling between my home and that of his new wife.
“I was mad with anger because that was never our initial agreement and plan and I could not bear the shame.
“I later told Oyetunji to stick to his new wife permanently because I cannot share him.
“Ever since, Oyetunji refused to cater for the only child between us until recently when he resurfaced to claim the child.
“He only managed to send N30,000 to buy the child’s WASSCE form, but never knew how he sat for all the exams and gained admission to the university.
“However, if the court should grant him custody of the child, I pray for a refund of all that I have spent on him in the past 16 years at N2,800 per day.
“ This is not forgetting the fact that I borrowed from the bank and a cooperative society to secure admission for the boy,” Idowu said.
Earlier in his testimony, Oyetunji, a resident of Ogbomoso, identified lack of love, distrust and irresponsible behaviour on the part of his wife as the reasons for filing the divorce suit.
“My lord, it is clear that Idowu doesn’t love me.
“I stopped sending her money for the child’s upkeep last year because she keeps overbilling me.
“I know quite well that one does not need more than N17,000 to buy a WASSCE form in a public secondary school, but Idowu said that she needed N30,000 and I sent it to her.
“The child had disclosed to me that he wants to be with me, but she keeps preventing him,” Oyetunji said.
He, however, refused to comment on Idowu’s allegations against him.
In his judgment, Odunade condemned the petitioner’s attitude of dumping his wife for another woman only to return to claim the child of the marriage.
He consequently dissolved the union and awarded custody of the child to Idowu.
Odunade also ordered Oyetunji to pay N10,000 as the child’s monthly feeding allowance in addition to being responsible for his education and other welfare needs. (NAN)
