MASSOUD ABDULRAHMAN OREDOLA, J.C.A. (Delivering the Leading Judgment): The respondent herein was the plaintiff before the Danbatta Sharia Court, (hereinafter called the trial Sharia Court) in Case No. CV/451/13 in respect of which hearing commenced on the 19th day of August, 2013 and concluded on the 30th day of September, 2013.
The facts of this case in a nutshell are in the following narrative: The plaintiff/respondent sued the defendant/appellant, her former husband, for payment of maintenance allowance in respect of their children who are in her custody. The defendant/appellant denied the claim. The trial Sharia Court ordered that the said children should be brought to Court. The children were brought and upon being questioned, they stated that they were under the custody of their mother. The plaintiff/respondent called three witnesses who gave evidence in support of her claim to the salient effect that, for more than one and half years or thereabouts the children had ran back to t…