A man, Ali Abubakar, whose wife is seeking divorce in a Shari’a court sitting in Kaduna, failed to appear in court on Wednesday, owing to lack of transport fare.
Abubakar had sent word through the court messenger, Tajuddeen Saidu that he would not be available for the hearing because he does not have transport fare from Abuja to Kaduna.
He prayed the court to go ahead with the proceedings and grant the petitioner her wishes.
Earlier, the petitioner, Ajinomo Ohunenene-Ummi, through her counsel, Nafisa Ibrahim stated that she wants to redeem herself from the marriage and was ready to return the N50,500 dowry paid by her husband.
She also prayed to the court to grant custody of their one-year-old daughter and order the defendant to pay N20,000 monthly feeding allowance.
However, the Judge, Malam Abdulrahman Isiyaku, ordered the court messenger and the petitioner to call Abubakar on phone so that he can respond to the claims.
The court messenger reported to the judge that Abubakar had agreed to the divorce and child custody but said he would pay N10,000 monthly feeding allowance for his daughter.
He added that Abubakar had agreed for the complainant to use the N50,500 dowry as a monthly feeding allowance for their child for five months.
The judge asked the complainant if she agreed with the amount and she concurred.
Isiyaku dissolved the marriage through Khul’i (redemption) and ordered the petitioner to keep the N50,500 meant for a refund of the dowry to feed her baby for five months in place.
The judge also ordered Abubakar to continue taking care of the child’s health, clothing and education until she reaches school age.