The emir of Kano, Muhammad Sanusi II, has said that the predominant culture of marrying more than one wife by Nigerians in the north is a major cause
of poverty in the region.
The emir stated this while
moderating a paper presentation session on ‘the role of universities
in nation building’ at the maiden convocation of the Federal
University, Gusau, in Zamfara state, on Friday.
Represented by Usman Bugaji, emir Sanusi was quoted by The Punch as saying that unless northerners desist from marrying more wives and bearing more children than they can take care
of, they will continue to live in poverty.
He said the culture of polygamy is what makes the north a major area
of poverty in the country, unlike in the south where the poverty level
has reduced.
“There are people who cannot afford to feed one wife but are ready to
marry three wives and have more children than they can feed, talk less
of paying for their school fees,” he said.
“The poverty level of the north is 80 percent, while in the south, the
percentage is 20 percent, simply because of the culture of marrying
many wives and producing many children who, at the end, are left on
the streets to beg for what to eat.”
Sanusi said some women get divorced by their husbands, which often makes matters worse, as they find it difficult to raise the children alone.
He said such cases have led to the bearing of more criminals in
society and victims of drug abuse.
The emir asked northern universities to look into ways by which such a challenge can be tackled.
“The issues we have today such as drug abuse, Boko Haram, banditry and
unemployment would be nothing compared to what we will be dealing with in the next 20 or 30,” he said.
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