A Trader, Sandra Iyenanye, has approached the Igando Customary Court, seeking dissolution of the long-distance marriage to her husband, Vestus Iyenanye.
The petitioner urged the court to grant her a divorce from her husband for abandonment, cheating and negligence.
“My husband, who is based in Austria, has since abandoned the home.
“He has come home four to five times since our marriage in 2019, and he has once beaten me up with a belt because of another woman,” she said.
She told the court that her uncle waded into the matter, after which he returned back to Austria.
“I found out he was seeing another woman in 2010 and I confronted him only for him to beat me up with a belt,
” I later ran to my uncle’s house for protection but my uncle mediated and settled our misunderstanding and my husband promised not to lay his hands on me again.
However, Mrs Iyenanye said she exchanged words with her husband over the telephone after failing to fulfil his promise of returning to Nigeria.
“After settling, he travelled back with a promise to come back a year later but he did not, so due to frustration we exchanged words on the phone; his family held on to what I said and termed it abominable and labelled me a bad wife.
“Unfortunately, the next time he would come back was 2022, but before then he stopped sending money for upkeep for our children and left all responsibilities to me; all efforts to speak with him proved abortive.
“The one time I called, it was a lady that picked the call and she later told me I was waiting for my husband in vain and I should better move on, she said all types of spiteful and hurtful words to me which my husband didn’t see any wrong in,” she said.
She alleged that Mr Iyenanye also stopped sending funds for the family’s upkeep, adding that her mother was ill throughout the period and later died.
The petitioner claimed her husband did nothing about it at first but later sent some money to her.
“When I saw that my husband was not trying to make the marriage work nor even attend to my sexual needs, I had a one-time affair.
His family said I must dance naked in the village square as atonement and pay the sum of N100,000.
“I asked my husband if he would still accept me, and he said NO,” she said.
“I want a divorce from him as I do not even intend to perform the rites either; it’s best we both go our separate ways, and I be granted custody of the children,” Mrs Iyenanye said.
Standing in for the respondent was his brother, Cobina Iyenanye, who had good things to say about his brother’s wife and sang praises of her.
“I only agreed to come to the court because I want them to separate without fights and all dues be given to the woman,” he said.
The court president, Adeniyi Koledoye, adjourned the matter until August 2 for judgement.
(NAN)
