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Polygamy, according to veteran Nigerian comedian and performer Atunyota Alleluya Akpobome, better known as Alibaba, might have cultural and practical benefits.
Having more than one wife, the comedian said in an interview with media personality Nedu, can sometimes make partnerships more stable by reducing friction and encouraging cooperation.
You might not be able to exert enough influence over your wife if you just have one, according to some. Alibaba stated that the woman would behave herself when she saw another woman in the photo because she would know that if she misbehaves, another one would be there to catch her.
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According to Alibaba, who drew on traditional customs in various regions of Nigeria, some women in old Ibadan advocated for their husbands to have multiple wives in order to keep the peace at home and discourage infidelity.
Someone I know in Ibadan encouraged her husband to have multiple wives. Not all women back then would marry young girls only so they could give them gifts. The reason being, he said, that they frown upon their men having mistresses.
Another thing he pointed out was that polygamy wasn’t always a choice; sometimes it was a matter of survival.
The family may contact the brothers and ask, “Who among you can look after this girl?” if the man’s wife is young or has little children and he dies before she can. According to him, that is also a component of polygamy’s evolution.
Alibaba acknowledged that polygamy is still a contentious issue, but he said that it had merit in some cultural and social settings.
“People may think it’s wrong, but many of those individuals wind up having kids with more than one partner,” he continued.