Wike Signs Female Inheritance Bill Into Law

By Charles Igbo

From Rivers State comes refreshing news. Women are rejoicing and applauding the Governor of the State.

Away from the politics of his party, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP,  Rivers State Governor, a Lawyer, whose wife is a High Court Judge, has signed into law, the Female Inheritance Bill of Rivers State.

Officially the Law is known as “The Rivers State Prohibition of the Curtailment of Women’s Right to Share in Family Property Law No. 2 of 2022. It means that henceforth, nobody can deny any woman of her inheritance.

While signing the Bill into Law, the Governor lamented the  cultures, especially, in Rivers State, which discourage whatever engenders growth among the people.

Wike condemned the culture  which prevent woman from sharing in the inheritance of their families even when they are often the most successful and useful members of the society in comparism to male children.

Emphasising the importance of the Law, the Governor wondered:

“I don’t know why it’s a taboo; because you’re a girl, because of this is a woman, you’re not entitled to inherit what belongs to your father.

“It is not you who decide whether you will have a girl or you’ll have a boy, it is God. So, put yourself in their shoes today where, by the mercy of God, you have three children and they’re all girls and you struggle in life to see what you can keep for your children.

“Tomorrow, one of their uncles comes, and says, my friend, girls don’t inherit their father’s property. With all your efforts in life, somebody comes to discriminate against them, why? We have even found out that women are more useful to us then even the men.

“The day, you’re getting old and dying you’ll know that you need more daughters than men. They will leave their husbands’ houses and come to take care of you.”

The Governor asked women to stand on their rights and  not to be afraid of any threat from/by members of their families concerning inheritance. He urged them to challenge any discrimination against them in court. The law, he told them, is their weapon law in  to access their inheritance.