The Federal Ministry of Interior has affirmed that all marriages conducted by the Ikoyi Marriage Registry and other Federal Government Registries in the country are legal and valid.
This was disclosed in a statement on Tuesday, December 14, in reaction to viral claims that a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos voided all weddings conducted by the Ikoyi marriage registry and tagged them illegal.
Dr. Shuaib Belgore, the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary/Principal Registrar of Marriages noted that there were existing court rulings authorising the Federal Government, through the Ministry of Interior to conduct marriages, by virtue of Legal Notices issued pursuant to the Marriage Act.
In his words:
“It is further worthy of note that the issue of formation, annulment and other matrimonial causes are by virtue of Item 61 of the 1st Schedule of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria exclusively reserved for the Federal Government.
The General Public is invited to note that these judgments are all still subsisting, competent, and have not been appealed against till date,”
