The controversy over the registration of marriages may be far from over as Local Government Marriage Registrars have said the Nigerian constitution empowers Local Government Councils to register all types of marriages in the country.
They stated that marriage matters are “exclusive Local Government affairs in Nigeria and other parts of the world,” citing the United Kingdom, United States, Canada and African countries like Ghana, the Gambia, Liberia and Benin, where they say marriages were registered at the local level.
Rising from a national conference held at the Radio House in Abuja on Thursday, the LG marriage registrars advised worship centers and foreign embassies in the country to disregard the circular from the Ministry of Interior directing them to recognize only marriage certificates from federal marriage registries.
Reading a communique at the end of the conference attended by local government registrars from across the country, National President, Body of Marriage Registrars, Deji Sokeye, accused the interior ministry and some state ministries of taking away the functions of the Local Governments to register marriages.