HOW HAS THE LAW PROHIBITING CURTAILMENT OF WOMEN’S RIGHT TO SHARE IN FAMILY PROPERTY FARED IN NIGERIA

Abstract: Women and womanhood in general have suffered several set-backs in relation to their rights of inheritance under Customary Law in African countries and Nigeria in particular. This is notwithstanding the unequivocal enactment of the fundamental freedoms guaranteed under the Constitution, including: right to freedom from discrimination. Thus, it is trite law that no person should be discriminated against by reason of sex, colour, or religion. In other words, the grundnorm enacts that no woman for our purpose should be discriminated against from sharing in any benefits on the grounds only that she is a woman. In this wise, the enactments of the Married Women’s Property Law, 1999, and the Curtailment of Women’s Right to Share in Family Property Law, 2022 by the Rivers State House of Assembly in Nigeria are laudable developments. Whereas the former protects the rights and privileges of married women without any form of discrimination; the later prohibits the curtailment of the rights of women from sharing in family property. This article focuses on the nitty-gritty of the laws, particularly the Curtailment of Women’s Right to Share in Family Property Law, analyzing the previous position of the subject matter before the enactment of the Laws, the position of the Constitution of Nigeria and the need for a swift review of the Laws to meet international best practices.

Keywords: Women, Right, Family, Inheritance, Property, Custom, Tradition, Law, and Discrimination.