MUHAMMAD SABIU reports the story of the 17-year-old Zamfara girl who got frustrated over her boyfriend’s inability to pay her dowry, and subsequently set herself ablaze.
IT is the dream of every young lady to get married to the man of her dreams, but sometimes the dream gets aborted as the girl could be jilted, or the potential groom may die or sometimes she may even call off the relationship by herself for different reasons.
In the case of Aisha, a 17-year-old girl in Albarkawa community of Gusau Local Government Area of Zamfara State, she had no problem with her boyfriend and both were hoping to get married soonest but there was one snag. Her boyfriend, Umar Faruku was not financially prepared to go ahead and pay her dowry.
As the days rolled into months and yet her boyfriend was not forthcoming, she decided to end her own life in frustration as there was already an air of uncertainty over her wedding day or even whether they were going to get married at all.
When news filtered into Albarkawa community about Aisha’s suicide attempt, everyone was in a state of shock. According to residents within the community who were privy to the relationship between Aisha and her boyfriend, she must have become frustrated over the continuous delay in fixing her wedding date and she felt that the only way out of the dilemma and impending shame was to commit suicide.
Unfortunately, the suicide attempt was aborted and she was left with severe burn on the upper part of her body. When asked what prompted her to take the path of suicide, Aisha told Arewa Live that she didn’t want to remain single and be forced to engage in fornication.
“I don’t want to have pre-marital sex or to fornicate with another man. I have preserved my body for him,” she explained.
According to her, the fact that her lover had no money to pay her bride price had been a source of worry to her which got her continuously frustrated. Aisha maintained that herchastity as a woman is intact.
How then did she plot the suicide plan? Speaking further with Arewa Live she explained that it was a self-devised plot executed only by her. She, however, added that she hinted her younger sister about the plan just minutes before she carried out the suicide attempt.
Findings by Arewa Live revealed that Aisha who is not in a conventional school has memorised the Holy Koran since she was 12 years old. Her childhood friend who pleaded for anonymity remarked that they were all really surprised over the incident.
We are really very sad with her attitude especially because she›s someone who is very religious.”
Arewa Live gathered that on that fateful day, she bought a gallon of petrol and poured it on herself and lit a match her whole body ablaze.