The court, presided over by S. M. Akintayo, delivered its ruling on Thursday, bringing to an end a marriage that began in September 1996.
A Grade A Customary Court sitting at Mapo, Ibadan, Oyo State, has formally dissolved the 30-year-old marriage between two senior police officers, Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) Gladys Faniyi and her husband, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Abayomi Faniyi, following allegations of persistent domestic violence, infidelity, and irreconcilable differences.
The court, presided over by S. M. Akintayo, delivered its ruling on Thursday, bringing to an end a marriage that began in September 1996.
In her judgment, Akintayo ruled that the marriage had broken down irretrievably and that its dissolution was in the interest of peace and the emotional wellbeing of both parties.
The marriage between the petitioner and the respondent has ceased to be henceforth, because the duo no longer wish to continue to live together as husband and wife,"the court president declared.
She further ordered that Abayomi Faniyi must take responsibility for the education and general welfare of the children of the marriage.
In addition, the court granted an order restraining the respondent from embarrassing, harassing, or disturbing the petitioner in any manner going forward.
Gladys Faniyi, who approached the court seeking legal separation, told the court that she could no longer endure what she described as years of domestic abuse, emotional trauma, and repeated acts of infidelity by her husband.
According to her testimony, the marriage had been troubled almost from the beginning.
“My lord, ever since I moved in with Abayomi on Sept. 23, 1996, it has been one day, one problem, in our matrimony,” she said.
She accused her husband of constant complaints, physical assaults, and humiliation, stressing that his behaviour never improved despite relocations and repeated efforts to salvage the relationship.
“He keeps complaining and beating me. In 2010, we relocated to Lagos from Port Harcourt, yet nothing changed for the better,” Gladys told the court.
She further revealed that the situation worsened in 2018 when she was allegedly forced to move out of the matrimonial home, an action that also led to the children leaving with her.
“In 2018, I was forced to pack out of his house, and the children followed me,” she said.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the CSP stated that her decision to finally seek a legal end to the marriage was driven largely by her husband’s alleged refusal to stop bringing other women into their matrimonial home.
“I decided to end this marriage because I told Abayomi to stop bringing his girls to our matrimonial home, but he did not stop,” she said.
Gladys also disputed claims that she had denied her husband access to their children or reported him to the police, describing such allegations as false and misleading.
“Contrary to what he has been telling people, I did not deny him access to the children, and I did not present any report of him at any police station,” she stated.
She added that since their separation, she had borne the burden of caring for the children alone.
“I’ve been solely responsible for sending the children to school and paying their fees,” she told the court.
In his response, Abayomi Faniyi denied many of the allegations leveled against him, portraying his wife as difficult and unmanageable despite his efforts to keep the marriage together.
“My lord, Gladys is too troublesome. I tried all I could to manage her, but she was unrepentant,” the ACP said.
While admitting to a physical altercation, Abayomi attempted to downplay the incident, stating that it occurred during a misunderstanding.
“I once gave her a blow, causing her to hit her mouth on a table during a particular misunderstanding,” he said.
He further accused his wife of physically assaulting him in a way he claimed could have caused serious injury.
“She drew my manhood, an action that was capable of causing me serious harm,” he told the court.
Abayomi also accused Gladys of keeping male friends without providing what he described as “tangible reasons” for such relationships.
“My lord, Gladys keeps friends, and most of them are male; she never gave me any tangible reason for their friendship,” he said.
He went further to allege that he once caught his wife in a compromising situation with one of those men.
“Worst still, I’ve caught her red-handed with one of those men before,” he claimed.
On the issue of the children, Abayomi insisted that he had been financially responsible for them and maintained a relationship with them until he was allegedly cut off.
“I’ve been responsible for the children, and I was even the one who took the one in Canada to the airport, converted naira to dollars for him and even sent him pocket money,” he said.
He accused Gladys of denying him access to the children and claimed that one of them had sent him a deeply offensive message.
“That same child sent me a terrible text message, insulting me,” Abayomi told the court.
After listening to both parties and reviewing the evidence presented, the court ruled that the marriage could no longer be sustained, noting that continued cohabitation would only breed further conflict and instability.