Ukehe, Enugu State – A long-simmering rivalry between the first and second wives of a man in Ukehe, Igbo-Etiti Local Government Area of Enugu State, has exploded into a national conversation after a video from the husband’s Ozo title-taking ceremony went viral, showing the childless first wife isolated and in tears while her co-wife was celebrated.
Mrs Gertrude Anulika Ngwu, popularly known as Mama Ukehe or Wetuelu Chukwu Obi, is the first wife. She has no biological children. Her husband’s second wife is said to have five children. The two women have lived in an uneasy co-existence for years, according to accounts given by the parties involved.
The tension became public during the husband’s traditional Ozo chieftaincy ceremony in late October 2026. Guests directed gifts, cash, and attention largely toward the second wife and her children. Mama Ukehe sat alone on a plastic chair for much of the event. When two women eventually presented her with wrappers, she broke down in tears. The clip spread rapidly across social media platforms, generating widespread sympathy and criticism of the treatment of childless women in traditional settings.
In a subsequent interview with BBC Igbo, Mama Ukehe said she lived peacefully with her husband for many years until he married the second wife. She alleged that the insults, hostility and isolation began after the second marriage. According to her, whenever she bought clothes or other items for her co-wife, the gifts were returned with the message that the second wife did not want anything from someone she considered “bad luck.” Mama Ukehe said the mockery eventually became so intense that she packed her belongings and returned to her father’s house to find peace.
The second wife denied ever mocking Mama Ukehe over childlessness. She admitted that the two women were not on good terms but insisted she had never insulted her co-wife about barrenness. The husband stated that he had never heard either woman insult the other over children. He said he did not invite Mama Ukehe to the Ozo ceremony and noted that she had previously returned to her family.
The viral video triggered an extraordinary wave of public support. Well-wishers from across Nigeria and different ethnic groups began calling Mama Ukehe, with some introducing themselves as her “first son,” “last son” or simply “Mummy.” Groups organised visits, gifts and celebrations in her honour. On Friday, November 6, 2026, supporters travelled to Ukehe for a grand reception, turning the woman who had felt invisible into a celebrated figure often described online as a “mother of the nation.”
Women’s rights organisations, including WACOL, condemned the incident, arguing that a woman’s dignity should never be tied to fertility and that isolating a wife constitutes a form of psychological abuse rooted in harmful patriarchal norms.
The episode has reopened broader discussions in Nigeria about polygamous marriages, the stigma of childlessness, respect within traditional families, and the emotional toll of public humiliation during cultural ceremonies. While the family has offered conflicting accounts, the public response has overwhelmingly centred on empathy for Mama Ukehe and calls for greater sensitivity toward women without biological children.
As of this report, the parties have not indicated any formal reconciliation.
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