Ibadan pastor's marriage dissolved after he impregnated two of his church members

IBADAN clergyman Pastor Adeyemi Adekunle has had his 18-year old marriage to his wife Grace dissolved by the Mapo Customary Court after it was revealed that he had fathered to two children via illicit affairs while being married.

At the hearing earlier today, Grace Adekunle accused her pastor-husband of impregnating two of his church members, as well as of neglect, irresponsibility and abandonment. Grace, a school teacher, had informed the court that her husband abandoned her and fornicated with his female church followers.

She said: “First, Adeyemi has shown no form of responsibility on any of the five children and me since he became a pastor a number of years ago and he neither makes provision for their feeding nor sends them to school.  One message Adeyemi has repeatedly passed to me is that I shouldn’t expect him to send the children to school because he is a poor man of God.

“He also said that I saw him as a pastor before I willingly married him and as a result, none of our children whose ages range between eight and 16 is currently in school. I have spent all I have on the children, with little or no success so far and worse still, Adeyemi has been sleeping with the female worshippers in his church and has impregnated two of them.”

Pastor Adekunle was absent in court when he was called to respond to the allegations but the court’s bailiff informed the arbitrators that he had been served several hearing notices without any response. Court president Ademola Odunade, thereafter dissolved that marriage, holding that the dissolution became necessary because there was no more love between the two.

Mr Odunade said: “In the interest of peaceful coexistence, the union between Grace and Adeyemi has ceased to be. Custody of the four older children produced by the union is granted to Adeyemi, while Grace is allowed to take the last because of his age.

“Also, the respondent shall pay a monthly allowance of N5,000, in addition to being responsible for his education and other welfare.”