A Nigerian woman identified as Eketiette narrated how her friend’s neighbors saved a widow from her in-laws.
According to her, the woman had just lost her husband, and his family member came over to take over his properties without consideration for his widow and children.
The neighbors who heard about the exchange came up with a plan to rescue the woman and keep her documents.
Read the full story here:
“A lady who lives in my friend’s compound, lost her husband and his people showed up from the village two days later to collect everything from her.
As they began to harass her to bring the documents for the house, the car keys and cheque books, a neighbour overheard them.He went and called three other men who were around in the compound and briefed them on what was happening. These men dressed up; one of them, a policeman who was off duty, put o his uniform. Together, they went to her door and knocked.
One of her brothers-in-law opened the door and told them to go away, that they were having a family meeting. The three men ignored him and barged into the house. They said they were from the bank, that the late man owed millions in debt and they were there to pack his things.
The wife was shocked. The man’s people were shocked. Their spokesman said, “Officer, sirs, let us hold a small meeting outside. We’ll be back.” They went outside to have a family tete-a-tete.
While they were outside, this woman’s neighbours told her their plan and assured her that they wouldn’t let anything bad happen to her. Ten minutes later, her brothers-in-law, husband’s uncle and cousin had still not returned. One of the men went to check on them.
Do you know these men had left? They fled and left their brother’s widow alone to face alleged bankers her late husband was supposedly owing. They hurried off to tell the whole community that everything the man had been displaying was on loan; that he was poor and owned nothing.
This worked in the woman’s favour, because they didn’t ask her to bring a dime for the funeral. After the man was buried, one of the neighbours who had showed up to protect her against her thieving in-laws, helped her collect her husband’s benefits and sell the house.
After the sale, she quietly relocated to Canada with her children. Her in-laws nearly choked to death. I chuckle every time I remember how they showed up again, to ascertain if the house had really been sold by the “bank” and that their brother didn’t own it.
A fellow on this app once said, “Our tradition dictates that a man inherit his late brother’s property. It is my right. His wife is not part of his family. The moment he dies, their contract is done.”
Interesting, this tradition that demands that you inherit your brother’s property, and not his debts. It doesn’t tell you to care for your brother’s orphans and widow. It gives you the right to only take and not give. Such a hollow tradition. Sounds like a tradition of thieves.”
