Ex-Rep contests terms of divorce, appeals judgement

Leonard Dilkon, a former member of the House of Representatives, has appealed against the judgement of a Jos High Court that recently dissolved his marriage with Joy.
Dilkon, in a notice of appeal to the Court of Appeal, Jos, dated June 5, declared that there was a miscarriage of justice, and urged the appellate court to quash the judgement.
Justice David Mann of High Court II, had, on Tuesday, May 30, 2017 dissolved Dilkon’s marriage to Joy, and dismissed his (Dilkon)’s adultery allegation against Joy and her Pastor, Danjuma Fwenji.
Fwenji is the Overseer of God’s Grace Divine Mission, Jos.
Mann also granted Joy’s prayers for free access to the three children the marriage was blessed with “both at home and in the school”.
According to Dilkon, the judgement is not acceptable because it “went against the weight of evidence”.
Dilkon said: “The court erred in law when it failed to properly evaluate my cross-petition seeking justice over Fwenji’s enticement of my wife.
“The High Court gave a very extra-ordinary attention to Joy’s petition, but failed and refused to consider my cross-petition; that effectively denied me a fair hearing.”
Dilkon, who did not contest the divorce order, particularly kicked against the order allowing his former wife to meet his children “anytime, whether at home or at school”.
He stated: “Since she is no more interested in me and the relationship, how can she just walk into my house just to see my children, anytime she likes? Is it not a recipe for trouble?
“Besides, the court gave her freedom to see the children anytime, citing the fact that we both had them, but left the sole burden of training them on my shoulders. I see this as contradictory.”
He urged the appellate court to set aside the entire judgement of the High Court, and take a deeper look into his cross appeal against Fwenji for “pulling my wife out of my house”.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the dissolution of the marriage and the quashing of the adultery allegation followed a petition filed by Joy, who had claimed that the marriage between them had broken irretrievably.
She alleged that the the situation went from bad to worse 2011, when he (Dilkon) sent her out of their matrimonial home.
Joy, through her Counsel, Juliet Esoro, in the petition filed on August 5, 2016 prayed the court to dissolve her marriage to Dilkon, and grant her access to the three children the marriage was blessed with.
She claimed that since July 3, 2011, “when things got really bad”, she and her husband had lived apart and without any conjugal relationship between them.
But Dilkon, who did not oppose the divorce plea, accused the wife of committing adultery with Fwenji, and alleged that Joy even got pregnant for him (Fwenji), but aborted the pregnancy.
Fwenji, however, denied the allegation and, through his counsel, Tayo Otitoju, prayed the court to compel Dilkon to pay him N10 million to compensate for damages to his image and reputation.
Mann, in his judgement, declared that the marriage had broken down, and dissolved it.
The court also granted Joy “equal access to the children as their father, both at home and at school”.
On Dilkon’s allegation of adultery against the wife and the clergy, the judge declared that the petition had failed because the petitioner could not substantiate his claim.
He also dismissed Fwenji’s demand for N10 million being compensation for damages to his name and reputation, “because he (Fwenji) did not follow due process in filing his petition”.