A woman felt distressed after her spouse refused to add her name to an overseas travel request, stemming from a prolonged disagreement about whether she should take his surname after marriage.
A church member recounts the surname conflict
The tale emerged when a female congregant shared it on social media, saying it involved a married couple from her church. She explained that for two years the wife declined to adopt her husband’s family name or obtain a passport reflecting it, despite his repeated appeals. The husband eventually dropped the subject, only to revisit it when a foreign posting arose through his job. The woman recalled him pleading, ‘Please get a passport with my name,’ but she stood firm, wishing to keep her father’s name. Later, when the overseas chance materialized and he was permitted to bring his spouse, she suddenly urged a swift name change, which he found frustrating.
Online reactions split over the husband’s decision
According to the narrator, the husband refused to include his wife in the travel application, claiming he no longer cared about the surname dispute. This prompted the wife to ask their church pastor to mediate. She quoted him saying, ‘I don’t care anymore; I won’t put you on my application,’ while she wept and begged the pastor to intervene. The incident sparked heated debate online, with many Nigerians discussing whether marital name change should remain mandatory. Comparable discussions surfaced in 2024 when several women argued for retaining their maiden names for professional and personal reasons.
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