… Refuses to take role in family shrine
Culture is generally believed to be the mirror of a people. It sums up the totality of their beliefs and their way of living. It is supposed to be a distillation of the best values of any people. But culture must be dynamic and unoppressive to remain relevant, but it is sad to note that some cultural practices that have been declared illegal and oppressive because they are deemed inherently unnatural, inhuman and repugnant to natural justice are still been widely practiced by some people and the law seems helpless to protect their victims.
This is the fate of the family of Mrs. Joy Isibhakhomen and her husband who the community has decided to ostracize due to the sex of their two children.
According to our source, Joy Isibhakhomen and her husband have given birth to two female children, which the Udegbe family insists cannot be initiated and made to inherit the family’s traditional Igbe dance and its mysticism.
The source who chose to remain anonymous said that the Udegbe family, led by the Patriarch and grandfather, known for its traditional practice and potent charms mysticism, were said to be very upset with their son’s wife, Joy Isibhakhomen for failing to give birth to male children to sustain the age-long line of succession in the priesthood of the family.
According to the source, the Udegbe family believes that the traditional mystic practice has the potent powers to protect the entire family.
The family accuses Mr. Jude Osobhalen of attempting to break the continuity of the priesthood, knowing full well that since his birth, he was initiated into the family cult to succeed his father who’s currently playing that role.
The Udegbe family is particularly vexed that when the patriarch passes and his son is unable to produce a male child to be initiated into the family cult, they will not be able to ensure its sustenance.
Another source close to the family revealed that trouble started for the family after Joy Isibhakhomen gave birth to her second daughter, a development her father-in-law and head of the Udegbe family cult wouldn’t accept, particularly after he had been made aware that Joy would not be able to have any more children due to the risk it poses to her own life.
Her father-in-law wouldn’t have any of that as he declared the two female children abominable and a second wife should be brought into their home to bear sons for the sake of the continuity of the shrine’s priesthood, the source said.
“Sensing danger and after a failed bid to secure police intervention, Joy and her husband Jude escaped with their daughters for safety, the source added.
Our correspondent scooped that the community Ibore Irrua where Jude was born and raised, is such that ancient traditions govern the lives of its people, including facial and body mutilations, blood sacrifices in the form of secret initiation to the mystic priesthood.
Incidents of gender-based discrimination such as this are rife in some local communities in Nigeria with government authorities unable to intervene, thus providing needed tonic for its spread.
