Female Corps Member seeking Dissolution of One-Year Marriage Sparks Worry over Rising Case of Divorce Among Young Couples

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In recent times, there has been an outcry over the increasing number of young couples seeking for divorce in Nigerian courts. Almost every time I read the news, there would be one or two reported cases of young marriages of less than three years in court seeking for a dissolution.


A recent case of a 28-year-old youth corps member who asked for the dissolution of her one-year-old marriage has created quite a buzz.

On Tuesday 18th September, 2012, 28-year-old Ngozi Ekeh told an Ojo Customary Court in Lagos that she was always having frequent disagreements with Onyekachi Ekeh since they got married about one year ago. She asked for the dissolution of her one-year-old marriage, citing incompatibility with her estranged husband.

She told the court that she started cohabiting with Ekeh during her service year, until he paid her bride price. She also added that she had been separated from her husband since 2011 and had been living with her parents since then.

“Since I got married to my husband, we have never agreed on an issue as a couple, it has always been quarrels and fights. In a nutshell, I think we are not compatible at all,” Punch quoted her as saying.

The report further noted that she stressed that nothing could make her return to the marriage.

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The rising rate of divorce among young couples is worrying. Men and women contemplate or seek divorce everyday and their actions often lead to negative consequences for the children and the society. This post is in no way trying to criticize couples that are divorced or are contemplating divorce but to seek advice and solutions.

When people get married, they often do so with the mindset of living together forever. But somewhere along the line, problems arise and the two people find that they can no longer live together. As Ngozi said, they become “incompatible” or have “irreconciliable differences”. This trend sometimes discourages unmarried people from tying the knot as some now prefer to stay single rather than divorced. We seek to know what often causes such problems and how they can be avoided.

What do you think is responsible for the growing rate of divorce among young couples and young marriages in our society?