A lecturer at the University of Ibadan, Oyo State has filed a suit seeking a court order to end her 20-year-old marriage to a colleague.
According to information gathered, Dr Bilikis Babarinde and her husband, Prof. Sikiru Babarinde have been married for two decades and their union has produced three children.
However, the wife has asked a Grade A Customary Court, Iyaganku, Ibadan, to dissolve their marriage union immediately.
Though Dr Bilikis’s reason (s) for wanting her marriage dissolved was not stated in the report obtained by PUNCH Metro, the complainant, who is a lecturer at the Department of Library, Archival and Information Studies, Faculty of Education, told the court that the 20-year relationship had broken down completely and should be immediately dissolved.
Her husband, Prof. Babarinde is said to be a lecturer at the Department of Early Childhood and Educational Foundations in the same faculty in the university.
While insisting on divorce, the plaintiff also asked the court for an order granting her the custody of their three children and an order mandating the defendant to bear full responsibility for the payment of their school fees, books, feeding and medical expenses until they complete their university and post-graduate education.
Dr Bilikis also in the suit, requested that her estranged husband pay N100,000 monthly for the children’s upkeep.
The lecturer also asked the court for “an order of perpetual injunction restraining the defendant from harassing, molesting, and intimidating the plaintiff in her staff quarters and anywhere the defendant sees the plaintiff.”
However, Prof. Babarinde had filed a notice of preliminary objection challenging the jurisdiction of the customary court to entertain the matter when it came up before the court on Wednesday.
The Professor’s legal counsel, Mr Yusuf Anikulapo, while addressing journalists yesterday, said, “A customary court lacks the jurisdiction to entertain a matter on a marriage conducted under the Islamic law.”
Meanwhile, counsel for the plaintiff, Mr Olufemi Adegoroye, had said in an interview earlier that the defendant had agreed to the dissolution of the marriage, but came up with new things which were not contained in a counter-affidavit.
The President of the court, R.B. Gbadamosi, adjourned the case till April 11 for a hearing of the preliminary objection.
