Hearing continued on the divorce suit brought by Kafayat Moses against her husband, Odeyemi Moses, before Oja Oba/Mapo Court C Customary Court, Ibadan, Oyo State.
Kafayat alleged in court during the first hearing that her husband, a pastor, abandoned her and their four children and moved in with another woman.
According to her, their 15-year-old marriage started experiencing crisis after her husband invited a woman to run the ministry with him.
“We had a blissful marriage until he introduced a slut into his ministry as co-minister.
“I never had any cause to complain about feeding or clothing; he took good care of our children and I, but things changed with the coming of this woman into our lives and his ministry.
“The first thing I noticed was that he started coming home late which was strange because he was not in the habit of keeping late nights, “Kafayat said.
“Later, he stopped giving me feeding allowance and refused to pay our children’s school fees. Our children became under fed and malnourished. Whenever I complained, he would beat me.
“He stopped coming home after a while. I reported him to his parents; they talked to him but there was no change.
“It was his church members who told me he was having an affair with the woman who he said was assisting him with ministerial work.
“I confronted him and he nearly killed me as he descended on me with heavy blows.
“I moved out of his house with our children since he had abandoned us. By the time I moved out, the children were looking like scarecrows because they were under fed.
Odeyemi , while responding denied all the allegations leveled against him and agreed to divorce. He stated that the plaintiff left his home two years ago when he went for prayers.
“All she has said are lies. I never maltreated her and our children. I carry out my responsibilities dutifully as husband and father; I feed, clothe and pay for my children’s education and care for the home generally, but she was never satisfied with all that I did. She was fond of complaining.
“I went to pray on the mountain and before I returned, she had packed her things and moved out with our children.
“She went away with all my property, “he told the court.
Having listened to both parties, the court president, Chief Ademola Odunade, stated that more evidence would be needed.
He, therefore, adjourned the case till May 9 and ordered that the couple come to court with their children.
The couple appeared in court on the next adjourned date along with their four children, the eldest, Samuel, a 15-year-old.
The court president asked Samuel who was responsible for the payment of their school fees and he answered that both parents do.
The defendant insisted he was solely responsible for his son’s school fees. When asked to present his evidence, he presented receipts of paid fees. The court president having looked observed that the fees were paid after the first appearance of the couple in court.
Samuel also refuted his father’s claim that he gives them N2, 000 weekly as feeding allowance.
The plaintiff claimed that she gives their children N400 everyday as transport fare which, if summed up, was more than what the defendant contributes towards the children’s school fees in a term.
Odeyemi claimed he had been living with his mother since his wife left him, but Samuel stated that his co-minister in church, turned lover, is now living with him.
Giving his judgment, Odunade, observed that the love between the duo had waned. He thus dissolved the union and ruled that the defendant should give the plaintiff N10,000 every month as the children’s feeding allowance.
The court president also ordered that he takes responsibility for the children’s education and judgment.