A lawyer from Kano State, Ibrahim Garba, has revealed how he married his cousin.
Garba, recently trended on the social media after disclosing that the woman he got married to is his first cousin.
In an interview with The PUNCH, he said he fell in love with his first cousin and he decided to marry her and there was no obstruction to the marriage as it was not against their culture and religion.
“Yes, my wife and I are from the same family. She is my first cousin and we knew each other and then it just happened. It is like falling in love with someone and deciding to take it further.
“I can’t really say it is a tradition applicable to all the North but it is Islamically right to marry your cousin and my culture doesn’t forbid it.
“We have many tribes and religions in the North; I can’t say it is applicable to all the northerners. Islam doesn’t forbid it, so I personally don’t have an issue with that. We have different religions in the North– Muslims, traditionalists, Hausa, Fulani, etc.” He said.
According to him, marrying one’s cousin is not a crime or incest as many describes it to be.
“That is their opinion; incest is only when you marry your sister, that is your blood sister, from the same mother, or from the same father. That is incest. But marrying your cousin is not incest and Islam doesn’t forbid it.
“As a Muslim, before I even became a lawyer, I had always been conscious of everything I do, I always make sure whatever I do is religiously right. If it is religiously okay and naturally okay, I don’t think there will be any problem.” He added.
He also stated that there was no implication to marrying one’s cousin as speculated by many, adding that his parent’s were cousins before they eventually married each other.
“Well, let me tell you something, I am a product of a marriage between two cousins. My parents are cousins. In fact, my wife’s parents too are cousins. If it would be a problem, I would have experienced it, or even my siblings (would have experienced it).
“And all my siblings are okay, so I can’t agree that there is an effect attached to marrying one’s cousin.” He said.
