A Nigerian public servant, Aku Bakari, has initiated divorce proceedings against his wife, Mary, citing her overwhelming engagement in church activities as the primary cause of marital discord. Bakari dragged his wife before a customary court in Nyanya, Abuja, 

In his divorce petition, Mr Bakari, who resides in Nyanya, accused his wife of abandoning her duties as a wife and mother.

“My wife no longer has time for me and our children; she is always going to church. Sometimes, she goes to church on Friday and sleeps until Sunday evening.

“She does not want to know whether we eat or not,” said the petitioner.

Bakari told the court that his wife had abandoned her duties as a wife because of the church.

He told the court that he tried to stop his wife from going to that church, but she refused.

“We were happily living together as husband and wife until 2010 when I started noticing some strange behaviours in my wife, especially her mode of dressing. She stopped wearing earrings and necklaces, claiming that those things belonged to the devil.

“That was when I noticed that she had stopped attending our family church, the Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria (NCCN), and was attending another church where she was being brainwashed. I told her to stop, but she refused. It is on this account that I wish to divorce her,” said the petitioner.

The respondent, a cleaner, was present in court but denied the allegations.

The presiding judge, Doocivir Yawe, advised the couple to reconcile for the children’s sake and adjourned the matter until January 30 for the hearing.