Court dissolves pastor’s 5– year old marriage

An Abeokuta Customary Court on Thursday dissolved a five- year-old marriage between Pastor Samuel Oniyide, 42, and his wife, Kabirat, saying it was obvious they no longer loved each other.

The pastor had asked the court to dissolve the marriage, accusing his wife of being disrespectful and infidelity; claims which the respondent denied.

Despite the denial, however, the respondent consented to the dissolution of the marriage, saying she was tired of the union.

Dissolving the marriage, the President of the Court, Olalekan Akande, said it was obvious that love no longer existed between the couple. He, however, said that the welfare of the two female children of the couple was of importance to the court.

Akande granted custody of the children to Kabirat and ordered the pastor to pay N5,000 monthly for the children’s upkeep.

Earlier, the pastor had told the court that the marriage produced two female children aged five and two.

He said that his wife was a trouble maker and was always jealous when female members of his congregation came to him for counseling.

“She drives away all my female friends thinking I am having love affairs with them; when they come for prayers, she would always pick up quarrels and start abusing them.

“My wife is not faithful to me; she receives secret calls and messages from men. Whenever such calls come in, she locks herself in the toilet to receive them,” he had said.

The petitioner told the court that Kabirat packed out of his house since June 2013.

He claimed that he had done everything humanly possible to change his wife, but they were not compatible.

The pastor had appealed to the court to dissolve the marriage to enable him to have rest of mind and for peace to reign in his life and ministry.

Kabirat, in her response, had denied all the allegations. She, however, consented to the dissolution, saying she was also tired of the marriage and appealed to the court to grant her custody of the children, for proper upbringing. (NAN)