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…only air crew and Mariners can have their wills recorded
…your death can be hastened if you are careless with your will
Professor Joseph Abugu of the Faculty of Law, University of Lagos (UNILAG) on Sunday said that not until a man dies, his will remain afloat.
TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports Prof Abugu as saying under the Wills Law, a man’s will continue floating until he passes on, before it becomes operational.
The professor of law made these comments while speaking on Sunday as the guest speaker at a webinar organized by Urhobo Rennaissance Society (URS) and entitled: ‘Administration of Estate Under The Wills Law Urhobo And Customary Law of Inheritance’.
In his presentation at the webinar that was well attended by Urhobo sons and daughters across the globe, Abugu highlighted all the necessities required to make a will valid in the eyes of the law with emphasis on Urhobo customs and culture.
He explained that “for a will to be legal, it must be written and must have two witnesses, and validly signed at the bottom.
“The writer must be in good health and having the ability to recollect those who are owing him, the properties he has and those he wants to be beneficiaries.
“A doctor could be invited to ascertain the state of his health because some of us as we grow older go senile and to avoid this one is expected to be in the right state of mind.
“You can review it periodically if for instance you remember that Abigail can’t get above N20k and considering the value of the amount you can choose to review it.
“You can also bring in a lawyer to further help give it the legality it deserves and the two witnesses must be present not that you will go and show Okoro this is my will he must be present.
“There must be addresses and signatures in the presence of the witnesses. It’s only air crew members and Mariners are exempted from having witnesses because of the nature of their jobs provided there’s a recorded video and that is when the video clips survive.
Delving into the Urhobo customs and culture, Abugu explained that in the Urhobo customs, certain family inheritance can’t be sold or transferred to grand children.
Using an inherited elephant tusk as an example; or an inherited house belonging to great grand parents, cannot be sold or transfered to great grand children because you are the eldest.
On illegitimate children, he explained that it has been proven up to the Supreme Court that illegitimate children are equally entitled to inheritance.
He said in the Urhobo customs, a wife whose dowry was not paid, the children are considered illegitimate.
“Some of these customs are considered repugnant to natural justice such a female cannot be head of family or an illegitimate child can’t head a family.
“But in all these the Urhobos have lived up to these expectations and have been able to manage it well.
But Dr Linda Binitie Cassidy, a discussant at the webinar drew applause from the participants when she raised some posers such as the issue of gates for married women, the issue of a first son holding trust on behalf of the children of other women’s children.
She also asked why is it that a married woman cannot inherit her husband’s properties except for her children but her husband can inherit her properties if she dies.
Cassidy explained that these are the issues the webinar is expected to x-ray.
Meanwhile, another participant declared that customs and culture are meant to be dynamic and not static.
TNG in its subsequent report will take a look at these posers and other issues at the webinar moderated by Prof Hope Eghagha.