Family refutes claims of court granting custody of children to prophet

Babajide Williams

The family of Lilian Chibuzor Abua has denied the insinuation that the custody of her four children has been granted to Prophet Ayodeji Obayan, her former partner.

The family stressed that, according to Igbo culture, it is forbidden for anyone who did not pay the dowry or bride price for their daughter to have custody of the children during the course of the relationship.

There were media reports claiming that an Ondo Customary Court, presided over by Magistrate Stephen Rotiba, had awarded custody of the four children to Prophet Obayan.

However, the Abua family has refuted the claims, asserting that no such decision was made by Magistrate Rotiba.

The family through its spokesperson, Emmanuel Azubuike, said Magistrate Rotiba insisted that the earlier order of the court ceding the children to Lilian Chibuzor stands and there was no contrary order to that effect.

Azubuike said Chibuzor Lilian who hails from Abia State never had a bride price paid by Obayan who hails from Ondo State, saying there was no legal binding on them as a couple despite cohabiting for over 23 years.

“In the Igbo culture, if a woman gets pregnant out of wedlock and gives birth without the bride price being collected by her family, the child bears the woman’s maiden name. There is no way the father of the child can lay claim to the child/children if he has not paid their mother’s bride price.

“Let it be known that the children from this union are not kids, they age, 23yrs, 21yrs 18yrs and 16yrs; they are grown and can make decisions for themselves. They saw the maltreatment being meted out to their mother by a man who was supposed to be their father. Now, they are happier without him and have chosen a path of happiness without Ayodeji,” he said.

Azubuike said the family agreed with the lawyer to the family that the court does not have the vires and the requisite jurisdiction to determine the same safe for the last child of the ‘marriage’ which is still 16 years old.

According to him, the court ruled that the petitioner failed to establish the existence of a valid customary marriage and that the fact that the petitioner was not able to approve the existence of any customary marriage does not in any way stop the court from making a pronouncement on the union between a woman and the man.

Azubuike said in dissolving the union, the judge said since the evidence shows that though both have once lived and had four children together, he has no hesitation to dissolve the union based on the fact that the woman is now legally married to Prince Abua-Obi.