Three sisters have allegedly seized and refused to release the corpse of their late brother, one Mr. Ernest, to his wife and children, for five years.
The incident happened in Nibo, Awka South Local Government Area of Anambra State, where the sisters and their late brother are from.
The sisters, who operate a prayer ministry, also seized the entire properties of their late brother and denied the wife and children access to them since 2019 when the deceased died after a protracted illness caused by accident.
The case was presented at the State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Welfare in Awka for government’s intervention.
Speaking, the wife and the only surviving son of the deceased said they were also denied access to him when he was still alive and critically ill, as the sisters allegedly took him away to the area where they have their prayer centre.
They also lamented that since Ernest’s death, they have been making efforts to see and bury his corpse, all to no avail. They added that the three sisters seized everything, including his corpse and properties, denying them access to them.
This was corroborated by a younger brother of the deceased, who recounted how his three sisters have been a thorn in their flesh of the family members and anyone who dares to correct or oppose them.
The deceased’s brother noted that two of the sisters are married while one is not. He added that their married sisters would always come from their husbands’ houses and team up with the unmarried one to control or interfere in the affairs of the family. It got so severe that three of them were suspended by the kindred and the Ụmụada.
When interrogated, one of the three sisters, simply identified as Mrs. Augustina, claimed that the corpse and the properties of their late brother were held by them because he was not on good terms with the wife and children when he was alive, which made them deny them access to his corpse and property.
Intervening, the State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Welfare, Mrs. Ify Obinabo, directed the three sisters to hand over and allow the son of the deceased to have full control of his father’s corpse and properties, so that he would be buried.
She stressed that anyone found wanting or violating any law of the state must be made to face the law.
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