The Nation Newspaper

Tag: husband

  • ‘My husband no longer ejaculate inside me during sex’

    A 36-year-old seamstress, Sherifat Adetunji, on Friday pleaded at a Lagos Island Customary Court that her marriage should be dissolved on ground that her husband was longer ejaculating inside her during sex.

    The mother of two said that her 10-year-old marriage was blissful until five years ago when things started changing.

    She lamented that her husband could go a year or more without making love to her and that when he did he would not ejaculate inside her.

    “My husband has been starving me sexually, sometimes he will not touch me for a whole year and when he did, he would not release inside me.

    “I have complained severally about my dissatisfaction over his attitude towards our sexual life, but has refused to change,” she said.

    She told the court that her husband once brought a strange man into their house to perform some rituals in the middle of the night and since then she started emaciating.

    “My husband brought a man to pass the night in our house and that in the middle of the night they performed some rituals since then I have been growing lean.

    “He did not show any concern about my state of health or why I was growing lean everyday,” Sherifat said.

    She, therefore, prayed the court to dissolve the marriage and give her the custody of their two children, Alia, 8, and Kismat, 5.

    Her husband, Monsuru, 38, a trader, told the court that he thought his wife was happy in their marriage because they hardly quarreled.

    He said he was surprised when she packed out of the house and brought him to court for the dissolution of their marriage.

    He admitted his sexual behaviour, saying that it was due to the current economic recession so as to prevent his wife from getting pregnant.

    “I stopped making love to her regularly and releasing in her because of the present economic situation in the country so that she does not get pregnant.

    “The man she said I brought home was a distant relation who had no place to pass the night.

    “The reason why my wife is reducing in size is because she does not give herself rest of mind, she is always worried about one thing or the other,” he said.

    He urged the court to dissolve the marriage as he was no longer interested in the marriage because she had packed out of their matrimonial home.

    The Court President, Mr Awos Awosola, said that marriage institution could only work if the two were in agreement.

    “Marriage is for two people, not one; your wife should also have a say in the home.

    “Since she has complained severally that you are starving her sexually, you should have made amends.

    “If you do not want to get her pregnant you can always use condom,” he said.

    Awosola urged the two parties to maintain the peace and adjourned the case to Feb. 16 for further hearing. (NAN)

  • Wife seeks divorce from ‘jobless’ husband

    A civil servant, Faith Ogu, on Tuesday, dragged her unemployed husband, Joseph Ogu, to a Jikwoyi Customary Court in Abuja, seeking for divorce on the grounds that he deceived her about his ’employment’ status.

    Faith told the court that her jobless husband had deceived her into believing he had a source of livelihood before their marriage, adding that she only got to knew about his status as a ‘job-less’ person after they had  tied the knot.

    “He never told me that he had no job, instead he kept telling me that he works with the Zenith Bank and that he has a business in Lagos, that yields him millions.

    “It was after I got married to him that I discovered the whole truth about him,” Faith said.

    She told the court that Joseph had also told her that he had built a house somewhere in Lugbe, but that after investigating, she realised that it was false.

    Faith said all her efforts to encourage him find a job did not elicit any positive response, as such she wanted the marriage dissolved.

    “He is lazy and does not want to do anything for a living; I have been lending him money, hoping that he would pay back.

    “I sponsored our wedding, I even lent him money to pay my bride price,” she said.

    The petitioner said that she had reported the matter to her elder sister to see if she could advise him but to no avail.

    “I beg this court to dissolve my marriage so that I can be free; I am tired of feed, clothing and paying medical bills for my husband ,” she pleaded.

    The Presiding Judge, Mr Everyman Eleanya, however reiterated that the respondent had not been in court since the beginning of the case and therefore ordered that a Hearing Notice be pasted in his sister’s house.

    He adjourned the case to Feb. 9, for continuation of hearing. (NAN)

  • Estranged wife wants court to effect release of pants in husband’s possession

    An estranged wife, Toyin Ogunminiyi,  on Tuesday urged   a customary court sitting in Ikole-Ekiti  to help effect  the release of her six  pants in her husband’s  possession.

    Other personal belongings the complainant sought for retrieval  from  her husband, Tope,  included  two native dresses, one jeans  skirt and a plastic basin.

    The News Agency of Nigeria  (NAN) reports that the 30-year- old woman also prayed the court to dissolve her 20- year- old marriage.

    She claimed that her husband  was constantly beating her and  tearing her dresses in  public,  in addition to  accusing her of  adultery.

    The complainant, who  described her husband as a drunk, said  he  had abandoned his family responsibilities.

    She, however,  sought the custody of their four children , urging the court  to  compel her husband to give her  N20,000 monthly feeding allowance.

    The plaintiff, who denied the allegation of adultery against her, said she often engaged in menial jobs in order to cater for the family.

    “My husband,  a commercial motorcyclist,  always spends his money on alcohol and his concubines.

    ” He does not take proper care of me and the children.  I am seeking  the dissolution of our association as well as the release of my pants in his house,” the estranged wife said.

    But defending himself, the husband  who did not deny his drinking habit, accused his wife of  adultery.

    ” I do not want this woman again, she is adulterous,’’ he said.

    The President of the three-man panel, Mrs Yemisi Ojo,   adjourned the matter  till  Feb. 6 for  further hearing.(NAN)

  • Baby of the year gift allegation: Mother denies husband’s claims

    he Osun State government has described as false, claims by the father of the baby of the year, Kajogbola Olasunkanmi, that his family was cheated by the management of the State Specialist Hospital, Asubiaro, Osogbo, the state capital, where his wife was delivered of her  baby.

    The government said it was embarrassed by media reports which quoted Olasunkanmi as saying that only a part of the gifts for the baby were presented to his family.

    The government, through the Bureau of Communication and Strategy, said Governor Rauf Aregbesola ordered an investigation into the claims, adding that the mother, Mrs. Kemisola Olasunkanmi, debunked her husband’s claims.

    “It has become imperative to make this clarification in view of the negative impressions generated by Olasunkanmi’s claims.

    After the embarrassing media reports which accused the management of the hospital of shortchanging the family by not presenting all the gifts for the baby of the year, the Governor ordered a full scale investigation.

    “To our chagrin, the mother of the baby of the year said her husband lied with his claims adding that the envelope containing the cash gift from the governor ‘s wife, Alhaja Sherifat Aregbesola, was sealed and intact when it was delivered to her.

    “She further explained that the money from the representatives of the Lions Club, which was also delivered, was meant for all the women who were delivered of babies that day and that each of them got her share of the gift.

    “In the course of the interview, Mrs Kemisola Olasunkanmi expressed regrets while lamenting that she did not know what came over her husband to warrant such dubious and false claims,” the Bureau statement noted.

    The Bureau, in its statement signed by the Director, Mr. Semiu Okanlawon, therefore urged those who had been misinformed by the misleading allegation to disregard it in its entirety.

  • Husband, wife to hang for murder in Osun

    Justice Adedotun Onibokun of Osun State High Court in Ile-Ife on Wednesday sentenced one Fatai Jimoh and his wife, Lateefat to death by hanging for murder.
    Delivering judgment, Onibokun said the prosecutor had proven his case beyond any reasonable doubt, saying that the convicts were guilty of the three-count charge of murder, conspiracy and armed robbery.
    The judge consequently sentenced the couple to death by hanging for the murder of one Bukola Taiwo at Ikeketu Village near Garage Olode in Ife South Local Government Area of Osun on August 12, 2009.
    The Prosecutor and State Counsel, Mr Moses Faremi, had earlier told the court that the deceased was strangulated by the couple in her rented room and her head was smashed with a sledge hammer.
    He said that after killing the deceased, who was a palm oil seller from Ibadan, the convicts stole her wallet containing the sum of N48, 780.
    Faremi said the offence was contrary to Section (1) 316 Law of Osun State and the Robbery and Firearms (special provision) Act, Cap R11 Law of Federation of Nigeria 2000.
    The convicts were arraigned on a three-count charge of Murder, Conspiracy and Armed Robbery.

  • Gun men held me hostage with my three children , shot my husband outside and came in to tell us they had killed him’

    The rate at which assassinations are being carried out in Plateau State in recent times has become a source of concern to residents as well as security agencies. The most recent one that took place in Jos, the state capital, where a mobile policeman was murdered at his residence in Kwanga near Rayfield, has added to the long list of unresolved cases of assassination in the state.

    Among the most recent cases of assassination in the state was the killing of a traditional ruler, Da Lazarus Agai, the Saf Ron Kulere and paramount ruler of Bokkos Local Government Area of the state. Since the assassination of the traditional ruler in July, his killers are yet to be found by the police or any security agency.

    There is a similarity between the manner the traditional was killed and how the mobile policeman aforementioned was killed. Both of them were murdered in the presence of their family members. While the traditional ruler was ambushed on his way from his village with some members of his family, including his two grandchildren and their mother, his two bodyguards and police orderly as well as his driver. But the traditional ruler was the target. He was singled out and killed in a cruel and gruesome manner while his family members watched in broad daylight. The family members watched the 70-year-old man dying until he breathed his last.

    Similarly, the mobile policeman, Sgt. Cletus SuweGompil, was callously killed while his wife and children watched the horror scene right at their own residence. The scene left the wife and children with the feeling of how painful death can be and how cruel a human being could be to a fellow human.

    Gompil’s widow, Martina, recalled her husband’s last moments, saying: “The last word I heard from my husband while he was being killed by gunmen was ‘Jesus’! I heard a gunshot and I heard my husband shout ‘Jesus’! That was the first gunshot at him. Then I heard a second shot and my husband remained silent. In that moment, I knew he had been killed. My children and I were held down in our sitting room by four strong men at gunpoint. We could not cry or shout while they were carrying out the killing.”

    From all the narration by neighbours and family members, it was a well-planned assassination by the gunmen. Some neighbours, including the policeman himself, had seen some people earlier who came to survey the house to confirm the availability of their target. The victim even exchanged pleasantries with them while they were perfecting the plot to terminate his life. It never occurred to the policeman that the same group of people he was greeting would return in a short while to take his life.

    Recalling how the policeman was killed, Martina said: “There was no indication whatsoever that something dangerous was going to befall us. On that very day, my husband returned from work around 5 pm. I welcomed him, served hi lunch.

    “Later at about 7 pm, we had dinner together with our children. Immediately after the dinner, he asked the children to bring out their books to do their homework. He was guiding them to do their homework in the sitting room when all of a sudden our dogs started barking as gunmen came towards our house. We were wondering what the dogs were barking at.

    “The children wanted to rush to open the door as they normally do, but I warned them not to go near the door. I had an unusual feeling with the vigorous way the dogs were barking and also told my husband not to open the door, because our dogs would not bark so vigorously at a normal visitor that way. I sensed that this must be a visitor with sinister motive.

    “My husband reasoned with me initially. But when the dogs were becoming more violent to the visitors, my husband felt the dogs might attack an innocent neighbour coming on a visit and felt he should intervene and rescue the visitor. He felt that after all, the time was just 8 pm and it was too early for anyone with criminal intentions to come.

    “Instead of going out through the front door, my husband went through the back door. Unknown to him, the gunmen came in their numbers and had positioned themselves at both the front and the back doors.

    “As soon as my husband opened the door, he saw some strange people. He asked them who they were, they told him they were his neighbours and needed to speak with him outside. He felt free and stepped out; then they surrounded him, held him and dragged him to a corner. They were heavily armed and they warned him to cooperate in his own interest.

    “Four of the gunmen came to meet me and my children in the room. They rounded us up and asked me to show them where my husband kept his rifle. I told them I didn’t know. They asked my children and they said the same thing. Before they came to us, they had asked my husband to tell them where he kept his gun, but my husband told them he did not often come home with his rifle. He told them he kept it at the station. But they never believed him, so they came to the room to search for the rifle.

    “They threatened to kill me and my children if we refused to show them my husband’s rifle, but we maintained that we didn’t know where he kept it. So they searched for some time and found the rifle under my husband’s bed. Then one of them informed their leader that they had found my husband’s rifle.

    “While they were searching, I was praying silently to God for help, but no help came. As soon as they said they had found my husband’s gun, I thought that would be all, but the gun was not their only target. They held my husband outside the house and held us inside while they were conducting the search.

    “All of a sudden, I heard a gunshot and my husband’s voice shouting ‘Jesus!’ He shouted in an agonising manner; so I knew it was him they shot. My husband did not die from the first shot. But when they shot him the second time and he was silent, I knew that they had killed him.My husband’s killers waited and watched him until he breathed his last. Then they came into the room where they had held me and my children hostage to inform us that they had killed him. One of them came to me and said, ‘Madam, we have killed your husband,’ and I said ‘thank you’.

    As they were leaving, one of them told me, if you try to come out as we are going, you will be killed, because we are very many outside. So if you love yourself and your children, don’t come out or shout as we are going,” I also responded, “Thank you”. So they went outside and shot sporadically to scare anyone as they made their way out of the place.

    “After their departure, I was still hoping that my husband would run inside to tell me that he was not dead, but there was nothing like that. It was neighbours who had noticed that we were under attack that came out to take his body to the hospital. I still expected the hospital to revive my husband, but they only confirmed to us that he was dead.”

    The Kwanga village is a new settlement, an extension of Rayfield, and could be said to be on the outskirts of Jos city. The family house of Sgt. Gompil where the attack was carried out was isolated. Neighbours live apart in a disperse settlement to reflect the new nature of the village. The distance between the house and their closest neighbour is about 200 metres.

    The gunmen obviously took advantage of this obvious security lapse to carry out their act in a comfortable manner. The gunmen came to the house on foot and also left on foot after hitting their target. They experienced no opposition from anyone while perpetrating the act. It was like a done deal.

    The late Gompil got married to Martina about 16 years ago, after which the young Gompil was helped by an uncle to join the police during a recruitment exercise in Maiduguri. The couple were happy that the man had got a Federal Government job and hoped to build a blissful home. Little did they know that they would only live together for 16 years. The gunmen came and in the twinkle of an eye, put asunder what God had joined together 16 years ago. Although the couple knew that death would do them part one day, but they never expected that such a day would come so soon. The husband struggled to erect his own personal apartment and they moved into their own house barely a year before the incident.

    Due to his frequent postings as a security agent, Sgt. Gompil made his wife to settle in Jos while he followed the dictates of official postings from one comer of the country to another. He had served in Maiduguri where he was recruited, then Bauchi, Nasarawa, Plateau, Yobe and Rivers, among other states. Gompil was returned to MOPOL 8 Jos in the month of August 2016 and was expected to rest for just three months before the next posting. SgtGompil already knew from the schedule in his office that he would be returning to Yobe at the end of this month.

    According to his widow, the late SgtGompil was someone who loved his job as a policeman the same way he loved his family.She said: “My husband was very caring. In spite of his continued absence from home, I never for one day regretted marrying him. He loved me and his children as much as he loved his job. I know I will never find a replacement. My life can never remain the same.”

    The police said they were already investigating his death, while family members are praying that his case would not go unresolved like several others before him.

  • How my husband and I survived eight-year forced separation -Lagos socialite turned preacher

    Dr (Mrs) Funmilayo Iroh is one woman who has enjoyed life in full measure as wife of former top Lagos socialite and philanthropist-turned-pastor, Oluwafemi Iroh. In his heyday, her husband bestrode the social scene like a colossus, riding to parties in convoys of many cars while musicians took turns to sing his praises. Funmilayo was there when Oluwafemi was bestowed the chieftaincy title of Borokini of Lagos and she the Yeye Borokini of Lagos. Together with her husband, they acquired landed properties in choice parts of Lagos and were involved in real estate business. And when, according to her husband, God needed them for His work, the whole family moved to America. But there, in God’s own country, they fell on hard times and the husband returned home to heed the call, to be joined later by Funmilayo and his children. She relives her experience, in this interview with PAUL UKPABIO

    You were once a socialite but now a pastor at Christ Unity Ministry. How did the ministry work begin?

    I joined the ministry 10 years ago. Before then, I was in America with my children. My husband was here in Nigeria doing the work of the Lord in His vineyard, so I returned to join him in the ministry in 2006. We had gone to America together in 1995, but he returned to Nigeria in 1998. So I was alone with the children from 1998 to 2006 until I came back to Nigeria to join him.

    What took you to America?

    Actually, I was supposed to go there on vacation. I went with three of my children at that time, and with my husband. But when we got there, the children liked the place and they didn’t want to come back. So they started going to school. In America, you cannot keep your children at home when schools are in session. So we decided to put them in schools in order to avoid going to jail. At the end of the day, they liked it and enjoyed it, so I had no choice but to stay back there with them.

    Which part of America was that?

    That was in Houston, Texas.

    What did they like about America that forced them to stay?

    Among other things, they loved the fact that they had light 24/7. They also loved the fact that the roads are tarred, the school system works, and there is structure even for further daily development. No strikes in schools. But more importantly, people showed them love, so they decided to stay. But my husband did not stay back with us. He returned to Nigeria. But initially, we were there together. He couldn’t stay back because God called him to the ministry.

    How was life in America?

    It was very tough. I went to America with three of my children, but when we got there, we had another one, our last baby, making four. It was quite challenging, but God saw us through.

    So, your husband left you in America and returned to Nigeria?

    He got a call to return to serve the Lord. Upon his return, life was not easy for him out in Nigeria, even despite the call by God to return home to serve Him. So he tried to come back to the US, but God did not support that. God wanted him to remain here to serve Him. Much as he tried to come back to the US, there was no opportunity for him to do so. He had been ‘arrested’ by God in Nigeria. He couldn’t leave. He was forced to stay put in Nigeria and heed God’s call. Not because he wanted to do so, but because he had to do so.

    But how was life in the US without your husband?

    (Shakes her head) It was tough. I have three boys and a girl. I always said it that from my experience, it takes a man to train a boy into a man. That was always on my mind. So I had to depend on God to help me train them daily. But I had to fall back on my father’s advice of those days. He used to say that one should not cry of cold when one is in water. So I knew then that I had to either face the situation or die. I summoned courage and with the help of God, the church in which we fellowshipped in Texas, and with the help of my sister that was living with me around that time, I was able to forge ahead.

    He was in Nigeria and you in America. How were you both able to sustain the relationship?

    We were daily on the phone. We were also on the internet. We were daily in touch with one another. That kept the relationship going. As a matter of fact, it was like we were seeing each other during those years, because we kept very much in touch. However, there was a need to see him. So during those years, I came to Nigeria once. That was in 1999. I stayed briefly and then left. He had not started his ministry then.

    There was a time both of you were highly celebrated society folks…

    Yes, those were the days that we adorned our chieftaincy titles as Borokini of Lagos and I was the Yeye Borokini of Lagos. I can still recall that there was no big party in Lagos and its environs that our presence was not felt or missed, whichever case it was. That was because even then, it was not all the parties that we attended, it had to be of a particular class in the society.

    So I was pleased when I returned briefly to Nigeria then and I found that he had started aligning himself to the work of God, though he had not started his ministry fully. It is not that he was not going to church while we were making waves on society scene. He was attending church, but he was not concentrated on it. He used to say that pastors are a lazy lot!

    I was indeed excited for him when during that my brief stay, I found that he had finally embraced the calling unto the gospel. Then I used to ask him after church service, ‘Did you understand what the pastor was saying?’ And he would reply, ‘I didn’t understand what he was saying.’

    When you decided to join him in Nigeria, was your mind made up to be a pastor along with him?

    That was actually what I returned to do. I remember assuring myself with the bible passage: what does it profit a man to inherit the riches of the world but lose the kingdom of God? So as a child of God, I keyed into my husband’s calling. It was not a surprise for me, because I am passionate about God and the things of God. So for him to embrace the call was exciting for me, despite all the challenges he had then.

    How did your friends react when you abandoned the social scene for the gospel?

    (Laughs) It’s amazing the way things naturally work out for those who believe in God. What happened was that without me even doing anything about it, God started separating some people from me. These were friends who would have distracted me from following God. He suddenly started separating me from them. I didn’t notice that until after a while. I started noticing that I was not seeing them again. Most of them did not call me. They did not stop by to ask how I was doing. Also, upon my return, many of them did not even know I was back in the country. All these also helped in allowing me to balance my faith and focus on God.

    But of course, there were a few who saw the change in me, who knew that I was back in the country and wondered about the change in me. They asked if it was really true. They asked if it is true I am doing the work of God. But again, the change was visible like the change in my husband. We had stopped attending parties. We had cut off from the social scene. I was not seeing a large number of them. But in recent times, some of them have traced us to our present church, seeing that it is really true. We live for God now. These ones have keyed into our ministry and I can say that at least two of them are supporting our ministry now. They come for church programmes too.

    Does that mean that your transition was a sudden one?

    No, I don’t think so, because I have always had the fear of God in me. I knew it was going to happen eventually. That was because of the love and attachment that I have always had for the things of God.

    What do you do differently these days?

    What I do differently these days is that I spend more time with God, reading the word of God. I spend more time teaching and ministering the word of God to people. I spend more time creating church programmes.

    Your husband went to a bible school. Did he lecture you at home or did you attend a bible school too?

    I did not attend a bible school like he did, but God gave me His teachings by Himself. When I came back to Nigeria, I met many challenges. The challenges were so much that I wanted to run back to America immediately. A lot of it was financial. But God said no, I have to stay here. Then he began to comfort me and trained me in His scriptures. He taught me about things of the spirit. God told me that I was not just in Nigeria to assist my husband, but also to fulfil a purpose in my life, because there was a reason He asked me to return.

    When you stayed back in Nigeria, were the children able to take care of themselves abroad?

    My eldest son is married now. But when I returned to Nigeria then, he was in the university and there was a structure in place to sustain them while I was here. They were living like that until my first son graduated from the university and my daughter graduated too. They have their own houses and are taking care of their younger ones now.

    How often do you go there to see them?

    You won’t believe it, since I came back to Nigeria, I have not been able to go back to America. But two of them came to see us and stayed with us for a while. They returned to America last year December.

    While your husband was alone here, were you not scared that some other ladies could snatch him?

    (Laughs) That wasn’t much of a problem for me at that time. That was because I was more pressed with my challenges in America and the struggle to survive with four children. So it didn’t bother me that much. I wouldn’t say it was not at the back of my mind. You know we are all human. So I thought regularly about him because I love him.

    But one thing that encouraged me and I also loved about him then was that he called every day. The relationship was even better on the phone. I was busy thinking of how to survive in a land that I knew virtually nobody at all. Other thoughts were secondary or not even considered. My husband perhaps knew I would be worried about that, so he didn’t give me room to worry because he was talking to us as if he was with us over there. He was also sending money and taking care of us while he was alone here.

    Your husband somewhere else complained of financial difficulties when he returned to Nigeria. How was he able to send you money?

    Before he went into ministry, even before we travelled abroad, I told you we were influential society couple and God had already blessed us with land and properties. So when he returned, it was easier for him. The real estate aspect came in handy. He was already in that business. So it was easier for him. That is why even up till now, we do not collect salary from the church. He is not paid and I am not paid. God blessed us while we were in the world. And even the plaza we built is bringing us money. That is how the Lord has blessed us. We use our little earnings to grow and sustain the ministry and we found out that the more we do that, God blesses us in other ways.

    But even at that (she laughs) there were real challenges. Though we had properties, it wasn’t all the time that we could sell or see a ready buyer. There were also people who owed us; people who rented our properties and did not pay. That has happened at the plaza. For a year and months, some people did not pay. So, we experienced financial struggle to a large extent. At a point in the course of the journey, I believed that it was just God’s way of letting us know about life.

    Not everybody in the ministry has had the kind of grace that we have had. For instance, the house we live in, we built it ourselves. Nevertheless, we had our period of lack. It was tough for us despite our properties. For almost four years, we couldn’t pay our son’s school fees until he finally returned to America last year. So we experienced lack in between. That is because it is not every day that you get land to sell. You have to wait and also pray for your tenant to have money to pay your rent.

    Tell us the secret of your youthful looks…

    To the glory of God, I am over 50. My first born is 33 years old and my last born is 20. My looks could be deceptive because people say I look younger. But I do take care of myself and my looks. I love God and soak myself in His presence. I know that if God is with somebody, the person will have His aura of grace. There are also some things that one can do to facilitate the grace of God in somebody’s life. So it is the grace of God that gives me my beauty.

    What would you say about your fashion sense?

    Well for somebody who lived in America for years and was even top society over here before going to America, I know I have a good fashion sense. America is a place where there is great fashion on display. Nonetheless, I like to wear things that make me comfortable. I don’t follow ideas from friends when it comes to fashion. I decide on what appeals to me. I like combining colours that rhyme.

    What accessories do you not do without?

    There is nothing that I cannot do without except God. I love packing my hair in a particular way. But one day, I was ministering and what I used to hold my hair in place fell off. I ignored the hair and what fell off, and continued to minister to the people before me. So there is nothing that I cannot do without.

    As a female minister of the gospel, what advice would you give to women?

    What I teach women primarily is to understand God’s purpose in their lives. There is a saying that when the purpose of a thing is abused, destruction is inevitable. You must understand why you are who you are. God is not a purposeless God. Everything He created has a purpose. When you find that purpose, you fulfil destiny, then you are completely fulfilled.

    Dr. Myles Munroe said the greatest tragedy that can befall a man is not death but a man that dies without purpose. I always tell women that they should not be complaining about their husbands. I used to be a complainant too. When I returned from America, I was complaining too, because the structure in America is different from what we have here. So I used to ask why my husband had not done this or that. But later, I found out the secret. The bible describes women as destiny helpers. We are not to complain but to complement him. A woman should find her purpose, she should find her strength, then she will be fulfilled.

    There is a reason God puts a woman in every family. There is a reason she married a particular man. I also preach based on experience. As a minister, whatsoever I preach to the people, I do that myself. The bible says let people see those things in your life. We should practise what we preach. The women here see those things in my life. They see the practical aspect in my life. They see what I have been through and how I overcame it. When you speak to such people, they easily relate to what you are saying.

    Now that you are neck-deep in ministering the word of God, how much time do you have for your family?

    Hmm, little time I would say. For instance, I have not taken a vacation since I returned to Nigeria. Okay, I travelled once with my boy to London, we stayed there for about a month. Apart from that, no vacation. But God gives us the grace. Every week, we usually have a new programme. Then we have our regular weekly programmes on each day of the week except Fridays. But the hours in between the programmes and Fridays are our resting periods. These days, we have a special programme where we pray for Nigeria. Our national anthem is a prayer itself. This praying programme is to call on unity in our country. There is chaos and pockets of instability. We need to pray for our nation. We need to pray for peace and pray against political disunity and insurgency.

    Even the national anthem prays that God should guide our leaders right so that they can do what they need to do right for this country. We also have to know about our rights and responsibilities. Everybody has a part to play to make Nigeria okay for our children.

    Are you happier working with your husband?

    Yes, I am. Happier to be with him, unlike when I newly returned. Now I am at peace with myself because I now know better.

    As a former popular socialite, don’t you miss good music from musicians like Victor Olaiya, King Sunny Ade, Ebenezer Obey, Orlando Owoh, KWAM 1 and others?

    (Laughs) I don’t miss them. I don’t miss the dance. Life itself is music and dance. There are some things that nobody will teach you but age and life will teach you. When I was young, I used to like certain things. When I got older, those things that I didn’t like, I realised that they are good for me, and my body system tilted towards those things. So as you grow in God, you tilt in that direction. It is not as if the things that you used to do were totally not good. They were good, but they do not appeal to you as much as you used to value them.

    Nevertheless, the good thing about our traditional music is that they are seasoned with knowledge and wisdom. Such still appeals to my ears. I still recall Chief Ebenezer Obey’s song, the one that he sang about how it is difficult to please the world and the one about friends. I listen to such to enjoy the words of wisdom.

    But having enjoyed the world, don’t you see your straight jacket lifestyle in church as boring?

    I don’t see it as boring. It takes an encounter with God to get to the level where I am. I had a true encounter with God which built up my faith, which is equally built on the power of God. His personality attracts me. God is kind, He is loving. He is merciful. Every promise God makes comes to pass. All this makes me to enjoy church. In His presence, there is fullness of joy. Just knowing that God can turn a zero to hero is enough for me. I have had so much goodness of God in my life. I used to be a sick child but without operation, God healed me. When I remember His goodness, it brings joy to me.

  • Customs killing: I hope government‘ll punish my husband’s killers, by expectant widow

    Customs killing: I hope government‘ll punish my husband’s killers, by expectant widow

    •…Debunks smuggling allegations against deceased, relative

    Deceased’s automobile graduation fixed for January

    The widow of Saheed Omotosho, an automobile technician killed by a stray bullet fired by Customs men, who were on the trail of rice smugglers at Alagbado on Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway 14 days ago has called on government to bring the officers involved to book.

    Temitope, a 21-year-old expectant mum, could not hold back tears as she managed to speak with The Nation.

    She was more pained that the officers arrested his deceased’s husband’s relative, Rasheed Oyedeji to cover up their “heinous crime.”

    The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) last Tuesday arraigned Oyedeji and Shuaib Sheyi before Chief Magistrate Y.A. Aje-Afunwa of the Magistrates’ Court, Ikeja, Lagos on a nine-count charge of smuggling prohibited items.

    The suspects have been remanded in Ikoyi Prisons.

    On the same day, the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights (CDHR) protested at the Lagos State House of Assembly, calling for thorough investigation and prosecution of Customs officers involved in the killing of Omotosho.

    Mrs Omotosho described the Customs’ action as “sheer wickedness.”

    She said her husband left for work in the morning only to be called by their landlord that the deceased had an accident.

    She said: “We were in the room together that morning before he left. He said he was to going to work. Not long after, someone called our landlord, informing him that my husband had an accident and was shot. That was what I heard and I took off to the scene. By the time I got there, I didn’t see him. He had been taken away. I feel so sad that I cannot explain how painful it is. He is a very kind person. Saheed is not a person that quarrels or fights people; So I don’t think that kind of fate could befall him.”

    Temitope, a fashion designing apprentice, wondered what future had for her three-month-old foetus.

    She pleaded with the government to mete appropriate justice on the officers who truncated her husband’s life.

    “I just know God will help me cope with my pregnancy and I hope that the government will punish the killers of my husband accordingly and if they don’t, God will do it.”

    Saheed’s elder brother, Wasiu Omotosho told The Nation that his parent have been in pains since the unfortunate incident.

    He said the family were planning his (Saheed’s) graduation for an automobile engineering training he concluded weeks before he died.

    He said: “I was in Ibadan when he died. I couldn’t believe the news until I called his friend who confirmed it. We were preparing for his freedom when it happened. “During Ileya festival, he didn’t want to go home but he had to in order to inform our father of his freedom. In fact, my dad wanted to come to Lagos to see his boss on the requirements but Saheed told Baba to wait till he could raise enough money to sponsor his transport fare. The graduation ought to hold by January ending. The government should not let him die just like that by punishing the perpetrators. He was not a smuggler or hoodlum. He only has a motorcycle he works with to raise money for his graduation. How can you just spray bullets at a junction where a lot of people gathered?” he wondered.

    Oyedeji’s relatives and colleagues have debunked smuggling and hooliganism allegation levelled against him by the customs authority.

    They described Customs’ action as utterly unjust and flagrant display of insensitivity to human life.

    According to Solomon Ayansola, Oyedeji was intentionally branded a smuggler to justify the Customs’ unruly operation.

    “It is a double jeopardy to lose Saheed and also accused Oyedeji of involving in smuggling and hooliganism,” he said.

    Ayansola said the family cannot go on with Saheed’s burial, when, Oyedeji, the deceased’s guardian is remanded in prison on frame up charges.

    Moshood Olanrewaju, a relative of Saheed said: “We went to the Lagos State House of Assembly and they told us that something will be done. But I’m surprised that it is the same day that they assured us that Oyedeji was reprimanded at the Ikoyi prison. “These people (the late Saheed and Oyedeji) are not smugglers. Oyedeji’s parents are farmers. It was through him that Saheed came to Lagos. If he was a bad element, people in the area will not troop out to say they want to protest his arrest,” he said.

    An Okada rider, who witnessed the Incident, said: “As the custom officers were speeding towards our bus-stop with a truck of rice tied to their vehicle, some armed hoodlums blocked them and detached the truck from their vehicle, offloaded the rice and took the rice away. They were only dragging then but didn’t shoot. One of the customs also wanted to climb the vehicle and spray people around but their boss cautioned him not to shoot. But he refused and shot in the air. They called another patrol which joined them there and started spraying anybody. They didn’t even care at all. The man (Saheed) killed was shot while riding motorcycle. When they found out he had died, two patrols fled. As we tried to tell them they had killed someone, they faced us again with gun shots, so we fled. By the time we got to the junction, the police had arrived but the customs threatened to deal with them if they meddled in their affairs. The policemen had to advice us to go back to avoid multiple deaths.”

    NCS) Federal Operations Unit, Zone ‘A’ Area Controller Umar Mohammed Dahiru alleged that Oyedeji incited a mob who were armed with various dangerous weapons to attack its officers, which resulted to a shootout between the officers and the smugglers.

    Police spokesperson Dolapo Badmos, a Superintendent (SP) said: “Some Custom officers were on the trail of a vehicle, in the process they went started shooting. One passerby was shot to death around Ajegunle in Alakuko. A patrol team led by the Divisional Police Officer of Alakuko Division, moved to the area to douse the tension. They (Customs officers) fired sporadically and escaped from the scene. The dead body was evacuated to morgue. Investigation is ongoing.”

  • Husband kills wife’s lover

    A fight for the heart of a woman has left one person dead in the Emebiren area of Warri.
    The Nation gathered that the deceased, identified as Robinson Ituke, was in a sexual relationship with Rose Ajekpemevor before she got married to Ochuko Ajekpemevor. Robinson and Rose however reportedly continued seeing each other even after the lady had been married.
    The situation was said to have got out of hands on Saturday when Ochuko, who has been suspecting his wife and had warned Robinson to stay away from her, reportedly got wind that the duo had continued with the illicit relationship.
    According to sources, Ochuko, in a feat of anger, had beaten up his wife and forced her to take him to her ‘lover’s’ house.
    The Nation gathered that on arriving at Robinson’s residence at Number 8, Udoko Street, Ugborikoko, Ochuko who had reportedly hidden a knife in his pants, pounced on his ‘rival’ and stabbed him on the chest. The attacker reportedly fled immediately.
    When the relatives of the deceased learnt of what had happened to their brother, they mobilized to the attacker’s house thinking he was still at home. But when they found out that the man had escaped, they destroyed all his property and left.
    Confirming the development, the Police Public Relations Officer of the Delta state Celestina Kalu (SP), said the command was already on the trail of the killer-husband.
    In a brief situation report, made available to the Nation in Warri on Sunday, Kalu said “one Clement Ituke of No.8 Udoko Street, Ugborikoko, Effurun, reported that at about 1600hrs of the day, one Ochuko Ajekpemevor and his wife, Rose Ajekpemevor, came into his house and the wife pointed hand on his son and her said her husband, Ochuko Ajekpemevor, brought out knife and stabbed his son on his chest and ran away.
    “The victim was rushed to lnland Hospital Ugborikoko immediately where he gave up the ghost. Meanwhile, detectives visited the scene, photographs taken and the corpse deposited at Warri Central Hospital’s morgue for autopsy while effort is on going to trace and arrest the fleeing suspect”, she said.

  • Jilted husband kills in-laws

    A 37-year-old man at the weekend set the house of his in-laws at Isampou community Ekeremor Local Government Area, Bayelsa State, ablaze killing his wife’s mother and brother.

    The man whose name could not be ascertained was said to have been enraged at his wife’s decision to run away from home.

    Thinking that his wife was sleeping in her mother’s house, the man was said to have sneaked into the compound of the deceased at night and set it on fire.

    While the fire burnt the mother-in-law to death on the spot, the brother-in-law was said to have temporarily survived the incident but died later following first-degree burns he sustained from the inferno.

    “The man poured fuel on the room of his mother-in-law thinking his wife was sleeping in her mother’s room.

    “The wife left him some days ago saying that she did not want to marry him anymore. The wife was living with the man at Bomadi, Delta state before she left for her mother’s house at Isampou, Bayelsa, a source who spoke in confidence said.

    It was learnt that irate mob from Isampou community stormed the Ndoro community in Bomadi and burnt the family house of the culprit in retaliation.

    The couple were said to be having marital problems when the wife decided to call off the marriage and return to her mother’s village.

    The wife reportedly planned to sleep in the mother’s house but changed her mind and and decided to spend the night at a friend’s house.

    “Angry youths from Isampou community stormed the Ndoro community in speedboats with the burnt corpses of the in-laws. After searching for the killer husband in vain, they burnt his family house,” the source said.