Mrs. Chidinma Orah, a devastated widow from Ufuma, Orumba North LGA, Anambra State, has made a heart-wrenching appeal to the Anambra State Ministry of Women and Social Welfare after her late husband’s family refused to release his corpse for burial—unless she builds them a house he allegedly promised before his death.
Her husband, whose name she withheld for privacy, passed away in February 2025 after a prolonged illness in Lagos. According to Chidinma, not a single member of his extended family came to visit him during his months of suffering—until just three weeks before he died. Yet now, they’ve seized his body, dictating burial conditions and sidelining his grieving wife and children.
“They told me my husband promised to build them a house and that unless I fulfill it, they won’t release his corpse,” she said, fighting back tears. “How can a woman mourning her husband be subjected to this level of cruelty?”
To make matters worse, Chidinma revealed that her husband’s younger brother has already started selling off his belongings, including two cars, and allegedly used the proceeds to marry a new wife, all without her consent. “I am still mourning, and he has sold my husband’s cars like they meant nothing. Now I hear he’s also planning to sell the land,” she added.
The mother of three says her children have been unable to mourn their father with dignity, as his remains have been kept from them for over four months. She fears her late husband’s legacy is being hijacked by greed and tradition weaponized against her simply because she is a woman.
She has now turned to the Anambra State Commissioner for Women and Social Welfare, Hon. Ify Obinabo, to intervene in the matter. “I need help. I want to bury my husband in peace. I want justice for my children,” she said.
This case adds to growing concerns over the abuse of widows and denial of inheritance rights in parts of southeastern Nigeria. Legal experts and women’s rights advocates have called for swift action, demanding that perpetrators of such exploitation be held accountable under the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act and Anambra State Women’s Protection Law.
