Unable to bear the state of wellbeing of her two children, Hussaina Lakari on Thursday approached the Upper Area Court, Kubwa Abuja to compel her estranged husband to assume responsibility for the upkeep of the children.
The court was presided over by Hon. Bashir Danmaisule.
Lakari had been separated from her husband, Abubakar Sani for over eleven years.
Hence for the past few years, she have been carrying the responsibility of feeding, clothing and sheltering their two daughters, Rukayat Abubakar, 13 and Amina Abubakar, 11.
She told the court that Abubakar had abandon them without contributing to their maintenance.
According to Lakari, she was two months pregnant for the second child when they both separated.
To keep up with the survival of the children, Lakari said she had to sell some of her properties.
She also revealed that this was not the first time that she would be taking a legal action against her estranged husband.
Though, the first time she approached the court for intervention was in Kaduna.
She said for a while he heeded the court advice to carry out his responsibilities but this did not last for too long.
But Abubakar who claimed that he was discharging his responsibilitie on the children when they were under his care, said he stopped when their mother came to take them away.
“After separation, he left me and stopped taking care of me and my first daughter. Afterwards, I had to sell some of my properties to take care of myself and the children (Amina was given birth to at that time).
“I took my husband to court in kaduna demanding that he takes care of the children. The judge adviced him to do so but he only did it a little while.
“When our first daughter was four years old, he said he wanted custody of her which I obliged to without any issues. Two years later, he demanded for the second daughter when she was three years old which I did.
“My husband took the children to his mother in Kaduna while I was in Abuja and when he later remarried, the kids started staying with the second wife in Kaduna.
“The day I visited my kids, I wept after seeing their condition. They were been maltreated. In 2018, his mother personally called me to come and carry my kids. I couldn’t cater for the needs of the two girls all at once. So I gave my younger brother my second daughter to stay with him in Birnin Kebbi. My husband hardly answer my calls so I took the decision without his consent.”
Responding to the allegations levied against him, Sani said “when the girls were staying with me, I took care of them. Suddenly in 2018, she went to my mum’s place and pick up the kids. She didn’t inform me and told my mum that she will bring back the kids after two days but up till now, they are still with her here in Abuja.
“I didn’t bother to check up on them or pay my kids a visit since their mother took them from my custody.”
Hon. Danmaisule after counselling the couple to have a rethink about their decisions adjourned the case to December 9th, 2020.
