An Imo State High Court sitting in Aboh Mbaise Local Government Area presided by Justice Ijeoma Agugua has declared that a woman is entitled by law to inherit her father’s estate.

The judgment was recently delivered in favour of Mrs. Regina Ihemadu (Nee Nwimo) who is the only surviving child of her late father, Mr. Imo Ebiringa of Umuelagwa Onitcha in Ezinihitte Mbaise Local Government Area of Imo State.

The court also slammed the sum of N7 million against Mrs. Ihemadu’s uncles for sharing her father’s estate to themselves soon after her father’s death and without her consent.

In a suit No. HAM/13/2017 filed by Emperor N. Iwuala being the counsel to Mrs. Ihemadu against her uncles including Sunday Uwazie and all members of the Ebiringa family, she claimed in the said suit that her father and direct relations died and soon after their death, her uncles shared the deceased properties to themselves and sold same to members of the public without resorting to her being the only surviving daughter of the immediate family of late Mr. Imo Ebiringa.

Reacting to the judgment, Barr. Iwuala said that the judgment is very apt and flows from the constitutional right against discrimination on sex stating that the judgment is only a restatement of the earlier judgment of the Supreme Court in the celebrated Ukeje case.

“With this, it is now clear that the age-long custom of disinheriting female children (both married and unmarried) from sharing in their father’s property and estate is now not only null and void, but unconstitutional.

•Sourced from Independent report

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