A mechanic, Adewale Muraino has told Oja Oba Court C Customary Court, Ibadan, Oyo State, he’s no more interested in his17-year-old marriage to his wife, Yemi Muraino, a food vendor.

Adewale stated in his suit that his wife was disobedient, came home late and was in the habit of fighting him any time he complained of her irresponsible act.

He added that the paternity of their first child was in doubt. He thus prayed the court to dissolve their marriage and grant her custody of their three children.

The defendant did not agree to the claim while she insisted that the child in contention was not her husband’s. According to her, he belongs to her ex husband.

“I met my wife while we were living opposite each other. She was living with her mum then.

“I was doing well on my job and was quite comfortable. We became friends and started dating. We enjoyed partying and had s3x on a regular basis. We always returned from parties not earlier than 1:00 a.m.

“She informed me that she was pregnant eight months into our relationship. I rented a one-room apartment for her and we made love there consistently. She told me on one of these days that her mother advised her to go back to her first husband.

“We parted ways, and she delivered my child in her ex husband’s house. Her ex husband named our child. She paid her mother regular visits while still with her ex husband and we would use that opportunity to make love.

“Six months after reconciling with her ex her husband, they had a misunderstanding again which ended in a fight. I learnt she constantly denied her husband s3x. She moved out of his house and returned again to her mother’s place.

“I got married to her in 2000 and she moved in with me with our first child. People started calling her attention to the fact that the child resembles me, but she insisted that he belongs to her ex husband and she refused to change his name to mine.

“When I was comfortable, she showered me with love and attention, but now that my fortune has dwindled, she has suddenly turned into a thorn in the flesh.

“She has a caustic tongue and now addresses me rudely. She also goes out and comes in at will. She doesn’t return home earlier than 11:00 p.m. everyday. And when I complain, she fights me.

“She humiliates me and has succeeded in making me an object of ridicule among my family members, neighbours and friends.

“All I want from her now is my first child in addition to the other two. She can then pack out of my house and walk out of my life, “he stated.

Giving her evidence, the defendant insisted that she had two children for her husband and not three as he had stated.

“My lord, my second child belongs to my ex husband and not him, ”she told the court.

“I met my husband shortly after I packed out of my ex husband’s place due to a misunderstanding. I moved in with my mother because I was nursing a baby then. My husband was living directly opposite my mother’s house. We got talking and he complained to me that his wife was making life difficult for him at home. I thus provided the succor he needed then.

“It’s true he was financially buoyant when we met, but I never demanded a dime from him because I never had the intention of marrying him. We obviously had a nice time going to joints and attending parties. We also had s3x regularly.

“As he earlier stated, we kept late nights. On many occasions, we returned from parties early hours of the following day, “the defendant told the court.

“I got pregnant five months into our relationship and he asked me to abort it and I did.

“Few months later the differences between my ex husband and I was resolved and I moved back to his place. I got pregnant immediately after this. My husband’s first wife also took in around this time.

“He attended my child’s naming ceremony with his friends while I also reciprocated when his first wife put to bed.

“My ex husband and I had another clash again and I left for my mother’s house.

“I started dating my husband once more and he impregnated me. He rented an apartment for me and to my surprise abandoned me there. I later got to know that he was afraid of telling his first wife he had taken a new wife. He later did after I threatened to tell her myself, “she added.

“He thus started sharing his nights between the two of us. He would sleep in my place some nights and in his house some other nights.

“I moved in with him when he built his house and hell was left loose. His first wife and I were always at loggerheads. There was no day we didn’t fight.

“My husband had also started experiencing financial setback. Survival became difficult while paying our children’s school was a herculean task. On many occasions, he would give the whole family N200 to feed on.

“Being a food vendor, I took up the challenge of feeding the home from my daily income, but my rival felt uncomfortable with this.

“We later started eating from separate pots. I made it a point of duty to pack food for my husband which he ate at work.

“I gave him money to buy Ileya ram during the last Ed el kabir festival. I did this to cover his shame, but he never appreciated this.

“His first wife later left him because she couldn’t bear the suffering anymore, “the plaintiff said.

“Whenever I asked him for our children’s school fees, he would flare up and beat me. Any time we fought, he would tear my clothes and leave me stark naked. He has succeeded in tearing about 12 of my clothes.

“Things got worse when I told him my second child is not his. We went for blood test and it was certified that my child and I share the same blood group.

“He chased me out of the bathroom with a cutlass and would have beheaded me but for neighbours who came to my rescue.

“Again, he locked me out of the house for returning late from work. My children and I squatted with neigbhours for 10 days. When I went home to take some of my belongings, I caught him with another woman in our bedroom.

“My lord, I’m also tired of our union, but much more, I pray the court to restrain him from parading himself as the father of my second child, “Yemi concluded.

Having listened to the evidence of both parties, the court president, Chief Ademola Odunade stated that more evidence would be needed.

He, therefore, adjourned the case till December 14 and ordered the defendant to come to court with her ex husband. The couple were also asked to come to court with all their children.