Anthony Agbonlahor Esq practices law in Nigeria, and has taught law at the University of Abuja. In this interview during the International Women’s Day, he says marital rape does not exist under the Nigerian laws. He also speaks on property, and gender affirmative action. Excerpts:
What is your position on the moves to reintroduce marital rape in the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP Act)?
No, a man cannot rape his wife. Once a man is legally married to a woman – that is there is mutual matrimonial contract between husband and wife, it implies consent and it is irrevocable. Therefore, you cannot bring the issue of rape.
But in the UK since the 1990s, marital rape may be established where there is no consent at the material time and with proof of violence?
Why should the man resort to force and violence if he is not possessed? Outside marriage, where consent is gotten by deception or where the person is stupefied by injection or alcoholic beverage or force, it is rape; but a man cannot rape his wife. If there is a marriage certificate from the Registry, it means that a man and his wife are one. If they are one, then no one rapes himself or herself. This applies to even church marriage under the Act and Islamic marriage under Islamic Law. Those who marry underaged commit statutory rape since a girl below 16 cannot give consent, but have you heard them taken to court? This is Nigeria; under Nigerian jurisprudence today, a man cannot rape his wife.
Is this from a religious or cultural interpretation?
Even in law, a man and his wife are one. That is why it is difficult for a wife to testify against her husband in court, unless it has to do with an offence relating to property or sexual assault or rape of a minor. A man cannot even be charged for the destruction of the wife’s property unless it was acquired before the marriage. While they are together, her things belong to the man.
Several civil society organisations are fighting against such paternalistic practices?
This is about the law. They can only make noise in the social media. Why don’t they test it in court first? Let there be a judicial pronouncement on these.
The Supreme Court has pronounced in favour of female property inheritance, for instance. Do you still insist that a man can claim the wife’s property?
In law, there is individual responsibility, or proprietary rights. That is a man and woman can own their respective properties. But where there is joint ownership, how then do you distinguish which part belongs to the man and which to the woman? It is a legal logjam. You do not buy joint property with Mr and Mrs because the Registrar at the Land Registry will not accept names with such joint titles of Mr and Mrs; it is either in the husband’s or wife’s name or if they don’t trust each other, they may use that of any of the children. This is because assuming the man dies before the woman or vice versa, and the family wants to inherit what was left, what happens to the woman? It creates difficult problems. If they have a registered company where both have shares, they can buy the property in the name of the company and have the property registered under the company, it gives them security.
Assuming the man dies and the woman remarries, or they don’t have a child, how do they share their properties? It creates problems. But I still repeat that if a man is angry and destroys his wife’s property like gold, jewelleries and trinkets, it is still his own, so when his anger calms down, he will pay.
What is your take on the growing cases of rape of young girls?
How can you kidnap for the purpose of sexual gratification? That is why I like what the NDLEA is saying that without drugs, there can be no crime. Some people can do anything under the influence of drugs. Nowadays, some young boys sleep with their mothers to make money, or the men sleeping with their daughters. In those days, people who commit these offences blamed the devil, but not anymore, the devil has been acquitted; drugs are responsible.
Woman are agitating for more positions in government. What is your take?
Women are their own greatest problem. Do you know that the highest number of voters in any country are women? The day women in this country unite, go under the umbrella of women like Aisha Yesufu or Oby Ezekwesili, they will take power. But I support that some positions should be conceded to women as an affirmation. They are good administrators and are less likely to be involved in corruption.
Do you agree with some people who say women are not essentially weak, so we should be talking about equal opportunity, not affirmative action?
The fact that women are clamouring for equal rights, they need unity more than affirmative action. If a woman becomes the president of this country today, the National Assembly will pass some of these laws. First of all, make all political nomination forms free and let the candidates go and campaign on their popularity.
The government said it is empowering women in the rural areas. What is your take?
When you set up cottage industries in rural areas where the households can benefit, if you have a grinding or milling machine bought for a community either for casava, millet, sorghum etc and people go and use it for free, it will be more beneficial to rural women than sharing the cash to them. In the present economic situation in this country, how many women have actually been empowered?
