CRASHED MARRIAGES – THE CASE OF CELEBRITIES

While in my room yesterday, I overheard my neighbours discussing about celebrities and their freelance lifestyle. They talked extensively about their failed marriages and why they can’t stay married. They talked about Ini Edo and her US-based ex-husband, Philip Ehiagwina whose marriage crashed within six years.

They said that Funke Akindele popularly known as Jenifa got married to Kehinde Oloyede Almaroof and their marriage crashed within one year but that she has remarried on August 2016 to Abdulrasheed Bello popularly known as JJC Skillz.

Trending further in their celebrity gossip was Monalisa Chinda who they said suffered a divorce from her husband Dejo Richards in 2009 after they had a daughter together but remarried on September 2016 to Victor Tonye Coker in Greece.

Furthermore, they talked about the Ex-beauty queen and top Nollywood actress Stephanie Linus Okereke who got married to ex-Super Eagles defender Chikelue Iloenyosi in 2004 but who later remarried in 2012 after the first marriage crashed in 2007.

Kate Henshaw’s marriage to Roderick James Nuttal crashed after 12 years according to them, adding that Shan George was once married to Tony Nwosisi but now a divorcee and a single mother. I also heard that Clarion Chukwurah Abiola has been married at least twice.

I was not bold enough to contribute to their conversation or gossip because my opinion is contrary to their point of view. It is true that divorce case in the celebrity world is more, compared to others but they talked about it as if it is the problem of celebrities alone. I overheard them conclude that the wayward life of celebrities accounts for their inability to stay married.

And I asked myself, is it really about been wayward? Is it really celebrity thing? There are many cases of crashed marriages; either reported or not. Many are even enduring in their homes, and dying in silence. Recently, Naij.com reported that a woman was arrested for stabbing her husband to death after he received a phone call from a woman suspected to be his lover.

Furthermore, according to The Sun of December 18, a newly-wedded bride in Sokoto named Shafa Muhammad attacked her husband with a razor blade and injured him on the head just three weeks after their wedding.

Also trending is the case of Maryam Sanda, wife of Mr Bilyamin Muhammed Bello who is the son of a former chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Haliru Bello.  It was reported that she allegedly stabbed her husband to death after she saw a text message on the husband’s phone which infuriated her.

The above examples are certainly not celebrities; and there are many more cases we don’t even know of. Some have even thought it wise to shun the opposite sex for same sex, yet they still have problems. The problem is that our level of tolerance these days is too low. The moment we come to terms with the fact that marriage is for two opposites, then, we will find marriage interesting. Male is the opposite of female and they each have their unique qualities which must be respected by each. Without this understanding, we open door for infidelity which is certainly not an option. Consequently, when a man ceases to be a man, there is always a problem and vice versa. For any marriage to work, a man must be the man while the woman plays her unique role as a woman, and both must come to terms with their natural endowments. There is no other magic.

Back to celebrity issue, Osa Amadi wrote on Vanguard of December 18, 2017 about celebrity marriages. He said that artists and most creative geniuses prioritize their work over love and other things, of which the other partner may find difficult to understand or come to terms with. He gave instances which I found helpful.  He said that Thomas Edison was once so much occupied with his thoughts that he forgot his name on a ration queue during the First World War; adding that Bernard Shaw once forgot his destination while in a bus because he lost his bus ticket on which his destination was written. He said that such people may not be clinically insane, but surely, they manifest some symptoms of madness of which their partners, especially female partners, may not understand. In addition, Amadi stated that Solitude and silence are vital molds upon which creative ideas take shape and that an artist’s partner who does not understand this need is bound to come into conflict with the artist, adding that the remedy is to give the artist the space he or she needs whenever he wants to be alone.

Osa Amadi may be referring to celebrities in his exposition. But the knowledge he shared is relevant to everyone and not only those in the celebrity world. It pays to think and behave responsibly.

Family institution, which is a product of marriage is the best and the most exciting institution which is created by God himself. Others like religion, economy, education, government, etc are manmade. We therefore ought to protect this sacred institution and stop the madness of divorce, separation, battle of sexes, and baby mama ideology; which are but the easiest way of raising bitter and confused children that may never enjoy a complete home.

Written by Olive Chinyere Amajuoyi

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