The community of Akeddei in Sagbama Local Government Area of Bayelsa State has been thrown into disarray after a family reportedly married their four-year-old daughter (name withheld) to a 54-year-old man merely named as Elder Akpos on Boxing Day, 26 December, 2023.
Child rights advocacy groups in the state have condemned the traditional marriage between the child and 54-year-old Akpos at Akeddei as illegal and criminal, claiming that it violates the constitution and the Child Rights Act.
According to the Do Foundation, a renowned child rights advocacy organization, the illegal marriage between the two occurred at the request of the girl’s parents, who claimed that the 54-year-old man was her spouse in their previous life.
According to community sources, the girl said that the man was her husband, who died unexpectedly in their previous life, and that over the years, she has been going from place to place, giving birth to children under different parents in order to find her old husband.
The source said
“The little bride said if she was not allowed to marry her husband, she would have no other business in Akeddei community, and that she was going to die peacefully and go her way.
“In order to avoid losing the girl to death, the family allegedly decided to organize a glamorous wedding ceremony to mark the union of the two previous life lovers.”
However, the Do Foundation, Bayelsa State Chapter, in statement signed by the chairperson, Elvis Mannie Esq, confirmed the development, insisting that the foundation has launched an investigation into the development with the hope of saving the child.
According to Barr. Mannie, “the Foundation described the said child marriage as horrendous and despicable, and also a criminal activity capable of retarding the giant strides made by the government and people of Bayelsa State in the area of protection of child rights.”
He noted that the Child’s Rights Law was domesticated in 2016 and is still in force in Bayelsa State, adding that “this law criminalizes child marriages and child betrothals on pain of imprisonment and heavy fines.”
The Foundation called on the Government of Bayelsa State, the Gender Response Initiative Team, and all stakeholders in the Gender Response system, including the security agencies “to launch a thorough investigation into this unfortunate incident, with a view to the protection of the child from sexual exploitation, and the arrest and prosecution of all persons found culpable in this despicable event”.