She made this known to LEADERSHIP Weekend during her visit to the corporate Headquarters of LEADERSHIP Group in Abuja yesterday, alleging that the ban of the marriage has been sent to the Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Maitama, Abuja.
According to her, she was legitimately married to Uzodimma (now a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria) and has consummated their union both in court and in the Catholic Church.
She said they “got married when Uzodinma had nothing, let alone people hearing about him as is the case today”, and have had five children together, until 1996 when he asked her to go back to her parents that he was going to travel down to have some issues cleared with them.
She said, “At a certain point in time I discovered that my husband, began to behave strangely towards me, and I asked him severally in private why he became changed all of a sudden, he said he was still the person I used to know, that there was no problem. Then I learnt to keep my peace, only for my husband to accuse me of changing, saying the thought of seeing me around him was a threat to his life”.
“I was confused because I Knew I loved him with all my heart and could not have become a different person to him after several years of marriage that produced five kids. But he insisted that I left and, out of fear for my own life, I had to leave. I have been waiting all this while for him to come to my family so we can settle our differences for me to go back to my marital home but he never did, and we have not divorced. He has kept our five children and prevented them from seeing me all this while and told them I am late while I am alive. He is my only husband. I still love him till tomorrow in spite of my detention at one time by the police and all that I suffered at his instance over time. How can the same Catholic Church, which I know abhors polygamy to the latter, wed him and another woman when our marriage is still valid?”
According to the documents presented to by Mrs Uzodinma, the church marriage between her and her husband was performed by Rev. Fr N. C. Onwujiariri at the Maria Assumpta Cathedral Parish, Owerri and signed by the administrator, on 12th April, 1993, while the court’s own was signed at Marriage Registry in Lagos on the 5th day of June, 1996.
Mrs Uzodinma said all she wants is to reunite with her family and appeals to the Church and all who care to empathise with her to ensure that the planned second wedding of her husband does not hold.
When the marriage counsellor of Holy Trinity, Maitama was contacted he acknowledged receipt of the marriage ban letter from the parish in Sen. Uzodinma’s home town in Imo State and the objection raised by his wife. He said they will play by the rule of the Church by sending back the same letter with a note that an objection has been raised for proper investigation to be carried out.
All efforts made to get Sen. Uzodinma’s account via text messages and calls, some of which went through severally, yielded no positive result at the time of going to press.