A businesswoman, Peace Oyakhilome, on Tuesday approached the Igando Customary Court in Lagos, to grant her divorce from her husband on grounds of constant beating and negligence.
Oyakhilome, a resident of No.12, Oseghere St., Hostel bus stop, Egbe, told the court that her husband, Jonah Abhumen, was always beating her, and had stopped taking care of her and their three children for long.
“Since the inception of our marriage, it has always been one beating or the other, anytime things are not going fine, he takes it out on me, he will always bring up a fight even where there is no reason.
“We were living in Delta where I was working as a teacher before we came to Lagos. I was the one taking care of the house, because then he had no job.
“Yet he would be dissatisfied with anything I do.
“I was saddled with a lot of responsibilities, so I always had to buy goods on credit and pay them at the end of the month.
“Any time the creditors come to ask for their money, it would infuriate him and he will end up beating me, forgetting that he did not drop a dime,” she said.
The business woman also claimed that Abhumen’s drinking habit also contributed to the beatings, just as he also cloned her phone to access her calls and chats, which always resulted in fights.
“Once he chatted up my ex, and asked him to send nude photos, which he did thinking it was me.
“He got home, showed me the pictures, went in to pick a cutlass and belt and started using it to beat me, while accusing me of cheating.
“I landed in the hospital and was there for almost a month. I developed hypertension, and when the doctor got a hint of the cause of my constant hospital visits as due to domestic abuse, he had to stop my husband from coming.
“The doctor always locked the door to my ward to aid my recovery and to shield me from him,” she said.
The petitioner also said that her husband had no regard for her family, and that out of the members of her family, the man knew only her father and brother.
Oyakhilome also alleged that her husband was not paying for the children’s school and feeding fees.
She urged the court to grant her a divorce and custody of the three children; and also ask her husband to collect his dowry back, so she could move on with her life as they had been living separately for two years already.
Abhumen was however, absent in court in spite of the series of summons served on him.
The court president, Mr Adeniyi Koledoye, adjourned the case until June 21, for judgment. (NAN)
