By Lanre Adewole
Ekere Sunday Ebong, the Uyo-based lawyer caught on the viral video on social media, pummeling his wife, has 18 years’ post-call experience behind him, and is likely aware of the Violence against Persons (Prohibition) Act 2015, signed into law, by then-President Goodluck Jonathan, on May 28, 2015, probably his last official act in office, which prescribes jail term and fine, for spousal battery.
Section 19 (1) of what is known as VAPP Act says, “A person who batters his or her spouse commits offence and is liable on conviction to a term of imprisonment not exceeding 3 years or to a fine not exceeding N200,000.00 or both”.
Filmed in the act, by his neighbours, exhausted by his years-long physical (and definitely mental and psychological) torture of his wife, the lawyer, with Supreme Court Enrollment number SCN047043, appears to have bought himself a fitting orange jumpsuit, worn by convicts in Nigerian prisons, just like in America.
Everything points to that end. Akwa Ibom, the jurisdiction where his alleged offence took place, domesticated the federal law, more than three years ago. The state assembly passed it on June 10, 2019 and then-governor, Udom Emmanuel, signed it into law on June 19, 2020.
I have read through this 32-sectioned anti-violence law. It is a shame that most Northern states are still treating it like leprosy, refusing to domesticate it, more than eight years of its passage at the federal level. Statistics, as of mid 2022, showed that only 19 states, mostly Southern, had embraced it. Possibly due to cultural and religious considerations, which could be read as misogyny, even states, deemed to be conservatively cosmopolitan in the North like Kano, Sokoto, Niger, Katsina and even Taraba, are still giving the Act a wide possible berth. In some Northern states, the lawmakers have never ever tabled it for possible discussion and well, ultimate rejection. What are they afraid of?
I was crushed watching the Ekeres, with the wife in her pant and white top, blood dripping from her mouth. Ebong was like a man possessed, yet he still didn’t want the battered woman, spend the night outside as he kept demanding from the neighbours shielding her, if they wanted to keep her.
Why does love turn this ugly? These are the same people that must have cooed sweet nonsense as they call pillow talk, into each other’s ears, definitely during courtship and most likely in the early life of the marriage, before whatever asunder.
Ekere may be dominating news now, following his arrest and conviction in public opinion court, with strong possibility of conviction by a conventional court, (now that Evidence (Amendment) Act 2023, has cleared the path for admissibility of electronic evidence in trials), but he won’t be the last. His wife was fortunate to have ‘nosy’ neighbours who damned whatever blowback from dragging him to the social media, which has obviously saved her life. The Ekwueme crooner, Osinachi Nwachukwu wasn’t that lucky. From alleged domestic violence, she passed on, on April 8, 2022. The world has since moved on, from grieving her.
It isn’t only those down the social and economic ladder that engage in spousal abuse. Those high up, with coercive and manipulative influences, are worse.
In 2013, it took a petition from rights lawyer, Mr Femi Falana, SAN, to then-Inspector General of Police, for the world to know what then-First Lady of Enugu State, Clara, was going through allegedly in the hands of her husband-governor, Sullivan Chime. The woman was allegedly imprisoned by her husband. The man said she had mental illness and being sequestered, on doctors’ advice. In such situations, the heavily-fortified walls of government house, would not allow nosy neighbours with smart phones and data, to call in the social media, unarguably the most effective ombudsman around the world today.
What about Jemima Abubakar? Recently, a lady called in from Abuja. She turned out to be a wife to a former spokesperson of a national security outfit. She told a heart-wrenching story of constant abuse by this uniformed fellow, and father to her two children. Her father, a prominent traditional ruler in a North Central state, recently passed away. As influential as he was in his lifetime, he couldn’t reconcile his princess and the once-famous officer. She wanted justice. I directed her to the National Human Rights.
The Ekere saga was breaking as the President of the senate, Godswill Akpabio, the highest-ranking public officer from Akwa Ibom, was rounding off, his well-publicized home and away birthday soirée, first in Uyo, then, Abuja. Happily, the number three citizen has recovered from the fainting episode at the Uyo bash, which he alluded to exhaustion and malaria, with him, now advising Nigerians, to always be well-hydrated.
As a lawyer himself, just like the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), must have been ashen-faced by Ekere’s conjugal irresponsibility, though no man can claim to have the mojo for forever-bliss in marriage. Anyone who is successful in the institution is simply graced. Yoruba will say, it is only the farmer whose cocoa, survives the nursery, who understands transplantation. Whoever, including genuinely-born again Christians, pious Muslims and conscientious traditionalists, is claiming to have the master key to marital success is taking grace for granted. Marriages do fail for every reason imaginable and unimaginable.
The longest marriage in history to fail was recorded in 2011 when Antonio.C, then-99-year-old Italian, divorce his then-96-year-old wife Rosa.C, after being married for 77 years! He found letters confirming his wife cheated on him, 60 years back!
Before them, were Bertie and Jessie Wood from the United Kingdom? They divorced in 2009 after 36 years of marriage, and wait for this, they were both 98 years at the time! After their (in) famous split as the oldest couple ever to part ways, Bertie died just a year later, shortly before his 99th birthday.
You would expect those so close to their earthly end, to just let whatever it is, including adultery of six decades back, go. But that is marriage for you.
It is always difficult situating the real asunder problems in marriages around here, due to cultural and communal embracement. The issues that would be freely discussed in the western world would be hushed down here, because you don’t want to bring shame to your family.
Only the Ekeres can tell the point where the marriage became a battlefield but Ebong taking the law into his hand, possibly because he is a lawyer or he is ignorant of spousal battery law, cannot be excused.
Truly, ignorance isn’t an excuse in law, but more marriages can be helped if NBA, supported by Akpabio, can work on the abstaining states, to quickly domesticate the Act in the North, where women can use more freedom of choices in marriage.
A law can also be passed, compelling institutions that perform marriage rites, like courts, worship centres and other recognized marriage-affirming bodies, to include the VAPP Act in the must-study and must-pass test for intending couples, before they are joined in wedlock. The entire Act is just 32 sections. Anyone serious with a lifetime commitment like marriage should know what the law says about what he or she is getting into. Spousal battery provision is just a few lines and whoever thinks that is serious work, surely isn’t serious about marriage.
The section should also become part of the marital vow of “till death do us part”. To make it easier for everyone, the provision should be translated into all major indigenous languages. Afterwards, the jail term for spousal battery should be raised to 30 years and 20 million Naira fine. Potential bankruptcy for just a slap, should tether men like Ebong.
