A divorcee, Madam Bubraye Helen Sawari is now calling for justice from government, security agencies and civil society organizations following the forceful eviction from her matrimonial home in Port Harcourt by her ex husband, one Mr. Christian Ikechi Nwankwo.
Narrating her ordeal to journalists, Sawari said her ex husband opted for dissolution of the union in 2018, adding that after efforts to resolve the issue yielded no fruit, she agreed for the marriage to be dissolved.
She said her ex husband thereafter instituted a case of divorce at the Elele Customary Court which was granted.
According to her, Mr Nwankwo in the suit prayed the court to dissolve the marriage and to take custody of the two children they had together which the court expressly granted to him without any conditions but was silent on the issue of their matrimonial home as it was not part of the relief sought by him.
She said: ‘On the 21st of February I got a call from the court bailiff of Elele Customary Court saying there is a judgment to evict me from my matrimonial home. I immediately informed my lawyer. However, before I could return from Bayelsa State where I work, my belongings have been thrown outside”.
Speaking on the judgment, she noted that the house was not part of the suit and the judgment was also silent on that and wondered why she was evicted from her matrimonial home.
The victim who alleged that her ex husband relied on an order he said he got from the Rivers State Commissioner of Police to evict her said she has been living on the street since the incidence and therefore wants her house back.
Counsel to the victim, Ihechi Mary Ebe also stated that the court was silent on the issue of house and described the action of Mr. Nwankwo as illegal, stressing that there are court judgments giving credence to the fact that if a man divorces his wife he stands the chance of losing the home.
Barrister Ebe said she and her client will institute a suit against the man for contempt.
Also speaking Mr. Tombari Goteh, the State Coordinator of Association Against Child and Gender based Violence condemned the forceful eviction of the woman, adding that they have written the Commissioner of Police in the State to clear his name on the matter.
He called for justice for the woman and urged the police not to allow it to be used against innocent citizens.
Meanwhile, attempts to reach the said Mr Nwankwo and the Police Image maker in Rivers State in Rivers State yielded no fruit at the time of this report.
