A man, Bolade has approached Grade ‘A’ Customary Court, Mapo, Ibadan, Oyo State seeking that his union with his wife, Kehinde, be dissolved on the grounds that she is troublesome an in the habit of raining curses on him and fighting him.
Bolade also stated that Kehinde, apart from embarrassing him in the public, poisoned their children’s minds against him and added that they are now hostile to him.
The plaintiff said his marriage brought him no joy and that he had no rest of mind in it.
Bolade pleaded for custody of their children in order that he might give them proper training.
Kehinde denied all the allegations brought against her and also refused that their wedlock be dissolved.
The defendant said that the plaintiff was always deserting her and their children.
According to her, his presence was not felt even while around because he was always returning home late in the night.
Kehinde added that her husband hardly ever gave her money for housekeeping, but that he would always give their children, who were underage, money to buy him alcoholic drinks, a practice she described as child abuse.
Bolade, in his evidence, said: “My wife has no shame. She derives pleasure in fighting and ridiculing me. She frustrated every effort I made in ensuring that she changed.
“I enjoyed much peace when I was out of home and town, but this would desert me the moment I steped into the house.
“Kehinde would always find a reason to fight me and would refuse to be pacified until our neighbours were attracted to the scene and thereby embarrassing me.
“My wife humiliated me by raining curses on me not only in our home but also in the public.
“Any time I was travelling, my wife would rain curses on me instead of wishing me journey mercy. Kehinde would swear that my corpse would be brought home in a plastic bag.
“I have not made any meaningful progress since I got married to Kehinde as a result of her negative pronouncement on me. My wife has succeeded in destroying our home rather than building it.
“Kehinde poisoned our children’s mind and turned them against me. Our children did the unpardonable when they threw stones at me for chastising them.
“I moved out of our home after she had frustrated me.
“My lord, I am through with my wife. I plead that you grant my prayer of divorce.
“I further entreat the court to grant me custody of our children. They have gone astray and need to be redeemed from total destruction.
Kehinde in her response said: “My lord, I do not agree that our marriage be dissolved.
“My husband has refused that I enjoyed our marriage because he paid a meagre sum of N20,000 as my bride price. He abandoned me and our children on a regular basis and refused that we developed intimacy in the marriage.
“I once saw him riding on a commercial motorcycle after he had left home on the pretext that he was going on a business trip. Angry, I picked up my phone, called and informed him I saw him go past me.
“My husband would behave like a nuisance whenever he is around.
“He would return home around 11:00 pm and would bang on the window with hard object thus waking up everyone in the compound.
“He failed to give me and our children feeding allowance and always compelled our children to fast.
“I once insisted he gave us money when I saw that our children were famished and almost fainting, but he beat me blue black.
“My husband would always complain of paucity of fund when our children asked him for their needs, but he would give them money to buy him alcoholic drinks early in the morning.
“I always discouraged him from such practice, and he would beat me for doing so.”
The court president, Mrs. S.M Akintayo, adjourned the case for judgment.
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