Cleric seeks end to 40-year-old marriage over sex denial

An Islamic cleric Ganiyu Salami has approached an Igando Customary Court, Lagos, to end his 40-year-old marriage to Halimatu, for allegedly denying him sex and threatening his life.

Salami told the court that his wife and mother of his eight children, has denied him his matrimonial rights by failing in her conjugal duties.

“My wife who sleeps, eats my food and drinks my water has been starving me of sex for 16 years now. She will not even allow me to neither touch her nor make love to her,” the angry husband narrated.

The petitioner said that his wife fights him frequently over little issues, complaining that “my marriage to Halimatu has been turbulent and fraught with fights and quarrels; I do not have peace of mind.”

The 59-year-old man also accused his wife of threatening to kill him, alleging that “another cleric who lives with me, told me that my wife was after my life, that she gave him charms to put in my food.

“There was a day she wanted to stab me with a broken bottle, but for the quick intervention of my friend who entered at that time and collected the bottle from her.”

The embittered petitioner further alleged that his wife turned their children against him and that she once ordered their first born to beat him up.

“My son beat me up mercilessly and tore my clothes to pieces with my wife’s consent,’’ he said and further claimed that his wife gave out their daughters in marriage without his knowledge and consent, and that he has never met any of his sons-in-law.

He said that his wife was after the property he inherited from his late father.

“My father’s property belongs to me alone; my wife and children cannot inherit my father’s property, but can only inherit my own property. My wife is fighting to take over my father’s property from me, claiming it belongs to her and the children.

“I later bought a land in her name so that she and the children can have that as their inheritance, but she went to the land owners begging them to sell the land and give her the money.”

He therefore appealed to the court to terminate the marriage so that he can have peace, live long and enjoy life.

Responding, the respondent however, admitted denying her husband sex, saying that “I was ill at a time and when I recovered from my illness, my husband refused to sleep with me, claiming I am a mad woman.

“He went and married another woman without my knowledge and when he later wanted to sleep with me, I refused.”

However, she consented to the dissolution of the marriage, saying she was no longer interested.

The president of the court, Adeniyi Koledoye, urged the couple to maintain the peace and adjourned the case until August 20 for judgment.