Panel of Justices (including Rhodes-Vivour JSC) April 11, 2014

Ukeje v Ukeje (2014)

LPELR-22724(SC)

Supreme Court of Nigeria

Panel of Justices (including Rhodes-Vivour JSC) April 11, 2014

Parties Involved

Appellant: Lois Chituru Ukeje (daughter of the deceased)

Respondent: Mrs. Ukeje (wife of the deceased) and other children

Facts of the Case

The deceased, Mr. Lazarus Ogbonna Ukeje, died intestate in Lagos in 1981. He had  children with Lois Ukeje his wife, and one of them, Lois Chituru Ukeje (appellant)  sought to be included in the distribution of his estate. The respondents denied her claim  on the basis that she was a female child and therefore not entitled under Igbo customary  law to be a beneficiary in her father’s Estate as they practiced a system of Primogeniture. The appellant challenged this exclusion as discriminatory and inconsistent with the  Nigerian Constitution.

Issues Raised

• Whether Igbo customary law, which excludes female children from inheriting their father’s estate, is valid in light of the Constitution.
• Whether the appellant, being a female, was entitled to benefit from her father’s estate.

Arguments of the Parties

Appellant: Argued that excluding women from inheritance based on gender is  discriminatory and violates Section 42(1) of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria which  states A citizen of Nigeria of a particular community, ethnic group, place of origin, sex, religion or  political opinion shall not, by reason only that he is such a person:-

(a) be subjected either expressly by, or in the practical application of, any law in force in  Nigeria or any executive or administrative action of the government, to disabilities or  restrictions to which citizens of Nigeria of other communities, ethnic groups, places of origin,  sex, religions or political opinions are not made subject; or

(b) be accorded either expressly by, or in the practical application of, any law in force in  Nigeria or any such executive or administrative action, any privilege or advantage that is not  accorded to citizens of Nigeria of other communities, ethnic groups, places of origin, sex,  religions or political opinions Respondent: Relied on Igbo customary law, which traditionally limits inheritance to male  children.

Judgment / Final Decision

Judgement: The Supreme Court held that the Igbo custom that denies female children  inheritance is unconstitutional.

Appeal: Allowed.

Orders: The Court ordered that the appellant be recognized as a beneficiary of the estate.

Legal Reasoning / Ratio Decidendi

The Court declared that customs which deny female children inheritance on the grounds  of gender violate the constitutional prohibition against discrimination (Section 42(1) and  Section 15 of the 1999 Constitution). Justice Rhodes-Vivour stated that such customs are  “repugnant to natural justice, equity, and good conscience.”

Conclusion / Observations

This case marked a breakthrough moment in the advancement of gender equality in  Nigeria especially in the area of customary law and serves as a landmark case for  subsequent similar issues. It effectively nullified gender-discriminatory inheritance customs under Igbo customary law and reinforced constitutional supremacy over  customary practices.

This is however, not to say that the application of customary law has been totally stifled,  it just highlights the need to gauge said customs by the rules of repugnancy to ensure they  are equitable before they can be applied and accepted by the courts. This is so the true  meaning of justice can be upheld.