Cleric sets wife's house ablaze for refusing to pray with him

Ahmed Ojo, an Islamic cleric in Ekiti, has left many people in shock, as he set ablaze his wife's house in the Egbe Odo area of Isua Ijesa in the state.

Ojo was alleged to have set fire on Bosede Afolabi's house for her refusal to join him in observing a late-night prayer.

Narrating this incident, Afolabi, disclosed that it happened on Saturday, April 27, 2024, when her husband returned home and requested that they observe a prayer around 11 pm on the said date, a request she declined because she was tired.

According to Afolabi, her refusal to participate in the prayer angered her husband, who began causing trouble that prompted her to invite neighbours to appease him.

She further stated that all efforts to make her husband understand that she was tired after a stressful day at work proved futile, and when she realised he was becoming violent, she left the house to sleep at a neighbour's house.

She narrated further, "At about midnight, a girl from our neighbourhood came to knock on the house to inform us that my house was on fire and that it seemed my husband had set the house on fire.

"I and some neighbours rushed to the scene only to see that the whole building had been engulfed in fire. Before we could get help in putting the fire out, the building had been razed.

"He was later caught and handed over to the police."

She added that she remarried after her first husband passed away, and she has been accommodating him since they got married.

When asked if there had been recurring misunderstanding between them, Afolabi said they had no misunderstanding before the incident.

She, however, blamed her husband's action on the influence of alcohol.

"What I observed that night was that he was drunk, which was why I tried to avoid the escalation of the disagreement that ensued on that fateful day. He often comes home drunk sometimes, but we have not had any serious misunderstanding in the past," Afolabi noted.

She added that the incident had left her in a devastating situation due to the huge loss it had caused her.

"I have not been myself since the incident happened because of the loss it has caused me. I appeal to Nigerians to come to my aid," she concluded.

Confirming the incident, Ekiti State's Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Sunday Abutu said the suspect is under investigation.