In the wake of Tiwa Savage-Teebillz marriage crisis, celebrity marriages have come on the spot again to be knocked to pieces. Like elsewhere in the world, Nigeria, has had its fair share of celebrity marriages which simply could not go the distance. Funke Akindele-Kehinde Oloyede, Doris Simeon-Daniel Ademinokan, 9ice-Toni Payne, Kenny St Best-Eddie Remedy, Ini-Philip, Kate Henshaw-Nuttal, Fathia William-Saheed Balogun, the list is endless.

In each of these crisis, there seems to be a common trend of excuses for the breakup. Here are some:

Infidelity

This is a recurrent decimal in many celebrity marriage crashes in Nigeria. Many entertainers cite infidelity on the part of their partners as one of the reasons for packing up their marriage. ‘Gongo Aso’ singer, 9ice’s ex-wife, Toni Payne, once stated that her estranged hubby’s cheating ways was responsible for their marriage collapse. She reportedly said, “Three things broke my marriage: his family’s interference, his manager’s interference, and his affair with Vicky Godis.”

Late Nights

It is practically inevitable for celebrities to keep late nights by virtue of their jobs. Late night shows, studio runs and location calls are some of the things that keep entertainers out at night, but unfortunately, this is also a major contributory factor to many marriage crashes. “Most times, he lives home and doesn’t come back until 7AM, at times, 2PM the following day” says Tiwa Savage of her husband.

Ego problems

Ego problems have been fingered as one of the leading factors to the collapse of many celebrity marriages. This is especially so in cases where only one partner is famous, and this makes the spouse give in to insecurity. In the aftermath of popular actress, Funke Akindele’s separation from her ex-husband, Kehinde Oloyede, it was reported that the man was often suspicious of his wife’s movements as a celebrity.

“I stooped to conquer him; buried my fame and name to make him my husband, but it did not work… I respected him to the end but he chose to treat me that way. He said he wanted to clip my wings” Funke cried out shortly after the separation.

Fraud

A school of thought believes that whatever belongs to the husband is also owned by the wife, and vice-versa. However, stealing is taking seriously by some couples, and it could lead to divorce. Amongst the many claims made by Tiwa Savage as the cause of her marriage failure, one that stands out is the fact that she said Teebillz was stealing from her. According to her, he used to short-change her while he was still managing her. She also accused him of piling up debts in her absence which she eventually had to pay for. “Then the other thing was TJ would declare that they paid N3m meanwhile they paid N4.5m, and out of the N3M, he’s still receiving his management fee of 40%. So you are basically stealing from your wife and he doesn’t feel anything” says Tiwa Savage.

Alcohol and Drugs

Indulging in alcohol and drugs is known to have destroyed many lives, and marriages are no exceptions. The love for the bottle and other illicit substances, has led to the collapse of many marriages. In her video interview last week, Tiwa claimed that Teebillz often neglected his family, preferring to take solace in alcohol and drugs. She alleged that she once walked in on him sniffing cocaine.

“You come back drunk, angry; we were living on eggshells because we never know what mood he’ll be in. At times, I even pray that he’s with another woman, so that way I know he’s still alive and has not gotten drunk or in an accident or something else….Or should we talk about the fact that I walked in on him taking cocaine in my house when we were still leaving in 1004 then” she said.

Childlessness

Failure to produce children is another reason celebrity marriages go down like ill-fated airplanes. When actress, Ini Edo’s marriage packed up, it was alleged that her in-laws were constantly at loggerheads with her because she was unable to bear a child.

Witchcraft

Whether you like it or not, Nigeria is a country that is deeply spiritual. Many things that happen on daily basis are assumed to have a supernatural tinge to them.

Thus, it is not surprising that Teebillz alleged that Tiwa’s mother was trying to destroy his life and business through witchcraft. This was also cited by ‘Jenifa’ actress, Funke Akindele, who claimed that her ex-husband, Kehinde Oloyede, probably used charm in marrying her. A report which went viral at the time of their break-up, quoted a close friend of Akindele as saying, “Funke Akindele believes that Kehinde Oloyede used charm to marry her, and Funke herself simply could no longer cope with the marriage again as a result of many women in Oloyede’s life, and the string of kids showing up from different women. The union was dead on arrival.”

Domestic Abuse

This is another culprit when it comes to celebrity marriage break-ups in Nigeria. Despite the vibrant campaign against domestic violence, some men still give in to their animalistic sides and batter their wives senseless. A shining example of this is Chika Ike and ex husband, Mr Eberibi

“I was a victim of domestic violence in my marriage and that was the singular reason I left my marriage, aside other reasons” said the actress in an interview after the marriage crash.

By Tofarati Ige