There is currently uproar on Social Media as Former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode and his ex-beauty queen wife, Precious Chikwendu, have allegedly separated.
The couple, who are parents to four sons, including a set of two-year-old triplets, have been married since 2014.
They have repeatedly unfollowed each other on Instagram after their marriage reportedly hit the rock.
A family source told our correspondent on Wednesday that the marriage broke down irretrievably due to a health challenge which Ms Chikwendu has been trying to manage since they became a couple.
According to the source, the health issue posed a serious challenge and the couple later became estranged.
Alongside other unprintable reasons, the source also claimed that they had countless disagreements over ‘‘unapproved outings.’’
The close family source said, ‘‘Snowwhite was fond of going out without Fani-Kayode’s permission and he could no longer tolerate it’.’
The source also denied reports that the union broke down due to domestic violence allegedly meted out to the ex-beauty queen by the ex- former minister.
In a separate chat with this newspaper, Chikwendu’s uncle, Okey Onyemachi, also debunked some allegations making the rounds.
He said, ‘‘I never witnessed any domestic violence incident but I am aware that they are separated and are not staying together as we speak, but reports of domestic violence are very funny and malicious.
“I am unhappy about the reports and my major concern is the children and why people are cooking up fake stories. The allegations that the kids aren’t chief’s is a big lie and unthinkable. Precious is my niece and I can confirm that all these stories are false.’’
Fani-Kayode has, however, written a pre-litigation letter to popular blogger, Stella Dimokorkus, demanding N2bn from her for a report he termed libelous.
The blogger had in a report attributed the separation to domestic violence and alleged that the triplet sons may not have been fathered by Fani-Kayode as they were conceived through IVF and Chikwendu had demanded a DNA test.
In a letter signed by his lawyer, Mr. Adeola Adedipe, dated September 16, 2020, the former minister described the report as preposterous.
The letter titled, ‘Defamation of Chief Femi Fani-Kayode- Re: Femi Fani-Kayode and Precious Chikwendu Part Ways Over Alleged Domestic Violence’, stated that the allegations were spurious and maliciously engineered.
The former minister said he was disturbed about the manner in which the report was written which insults the sensibilities of unsuspecting readers.
He denied allegations that he retrieved the car he bought for his estranged wife and had left her broke.
Fani-Kayode said it was saddening that his innocent little children could be dragged into such a report, subjecting them to ridicule.
The letter further read, “Our client is aggrieved and has instructed us to draw your attention to these libelous breaches of his person and family. By this publication, our client has received denigrating phone calls and messages across the globe by virtue of which he now sufferers immeasurable loss of goodwill.
“However, he is inclined to draw a curtain over the wild and spurious claims if you retract the allegations on the same platform they were published and consequently apologise to him in two other national dailies.
“You are also advised to enter into negotiations with us for the sum of two billion naira only being a token amount for penitence. Please bear in mind that you have 14 days from receipt of this letter to comply with the highlighted mitigating measures, the failure of which will leave our client with no preferred alternative than to seek redress in court.”
Fani-Kayode and Chikwendu, who is a former beauty queen, became an item around 2015 and subsequently welcomed a son in 2016.
In 2018, they welcomed a set of triplet boys.
As a result, Nigerians have taken to their social media handles to react on the development. Below are some reactions:
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