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00:00 It is sad that the issue of paternity fraud has become increasingly common in Nigeria
00:05 and its implications echo through society as it challenges the concept of family, identity
00:11 and trust. Be informed that paternity fraud occurs when a child's biological father
00:15 is misrepresented, hence we will delve into the legal complexities of this issue. Joining
00:21 us is barrister Oluwatodimu Ige who will be shedding light on the intricacies of paternity
00:26 fraud from a legal standpoint.
00:29 When we are talking about paternity fraud, paternity fraud simply means giving a child
00:34 that does not belong to one person to another person. So it could be erroneous, it could
00:40 be intentional. The logic behind it is that the person who has been standing as the parent
00:47 or the father of that child is actually not the father of the child. So that, now when
00:52 it becomes fraud is when you erroneously misrepresent the fact that the child belongs to someone
00:58 who it does not belong to. So that's where it becomes a fraud.
01:03 Well, as it stands, fraud, whatever name you want to call it, every time paternity fraud
01:10 comes, fraud is fraud and fraud is bad. So that's my opinion, that whenever there is
01:16 a case of fraud it is not pleasant because one party has been put at a disadvantage and
01:22 then it's quite unfortunate that it is on an increasing level in our society today and
01:28 it needs to be addressed urgently.
01:31 Statistically, Nigeria ranks second highest in paternity fraud in the world. Recent studies
01:38 conducted by Smart DNA, a testing centre in Lagos revealed that one out of four tested
01:44 men is not the biological father of their children and this accounts for 73.88% of tests
01:52 being a correct representation, while negative results made up 26.12%. Another test conducted
02:01 by the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research proves that 27% of paternity tests conducted
02:07 in Lagos states revealed cases of misrepresented paternity. Despite the predominance of studies
02:13 related to paternity fraud, there is no Nigerian law at this moment that criminalises it, making
02:20 it challenging for victims to seek justice. However, erroneously naming a non-biological
02:25 father on an open record like a birth certificate constitutes a criminal offence.
02:31 As it is as of today, there is no law that talks about paternity fraud. Although in recent
02:38 times, about last month I read in the news, where somebody brought a bill to the house
02:42 to actually look into paternity bill. Let's hope that that flies. Now, what it means is
02:47 that in most times, the woman will claim that it was erroneous or probably like you said,
02:55 the baby was exchanged at the hospital. And some will say, "Oh yes, I slept with somebody
03:00 before my marriage and I didn't know that the child was not born." But in the case where
03:04 it is glaring, when there is paternity fraud, there is no clear-cut legislation as regards
03:10 to paternity fraud. But there are some aspects of it that one can actually enforce the law.
03:16 I'll give you an example. When you fraudulently misrepresent on a birth certificate that party
03:22 A is the father of a child, knowing fully well that that person is not the father of
03:27 the child, one, you have committed what we call perjury because those are documents that
03:35 you are expected to say the truth in such documents. And by misrepresenting the fact,
03:41 an action could be brought against you for forgery or perjury, as the case may stand.
03:46 So when you fraudulently, you have been taking money from someone to cater to a child that
03:52 doesn't belong to them, knowingly. And that means that you have been obtaining money by
03:57 trick, obtaining by false pretence. So such an action, if you are able to prove beyond
04:02 reasonable doubt, because that's the requirement placed on such persons by the law, such an
04:08 action might succeed. We can always test our laws when it comes to such matters. Because
04:13 if I can, if an action for fraud can succeed for someone who has taken transport money
04:18 from me and didn't come, I can actually sue such a person. And in such an instance, wherein
04:25 I've trained a child for seven to 14 years or so many years, you have taken money from
04:29 me knowingly and I'm able to establish that fact that this person actually knew that that
04:34 child doesn't belong to me. A fraud, you know, so that's fraud. So not necessarily an action
04:39 against that person for paternity fraud, but you can come against such persons for fraud.
04:44 You know, if you're able to prove your case, who knows?
04:47 DNA as a method of establishing paternity is recognised by law as a conclusive tool
04:53 in resolving paternity disputes.
04:56 Now to conduct a DNA on a child that belongs to, that is purported to belong to a man,
05:03 it is within your rights to conduct such tests. And you will see that there are some members
05:07 agencies that would require that you conduct a DNA test before the visa is granted. And
05:12 so for some other reasons, some agencies or some parastatals will require mandatorily
05:17 that you conduct a DNA test. That's on one side. Secondly, if you have any reason to
05:22 doubt, it is within your rights to test the DNA of a child because the child is reported
05:29 to belong to you. And if you want to eliminate every doubt, most times you, if I can conduct
05:35 a genotype test on my child, nothing should stop me from conducting a DNA on them.
05:42 You have a child and you have any iota of doubt to, because every time, even when you
05:48 are planning your will, when you are planning for the family, if there is a doubt, most
05:52 times you will not want to be honest with your partner because you don't trust the legitimacy
05:58 of the child. So to eliminate all doubts, the first step is that you conduct a DNA on
06:04 the child as the child is coming to eradicate all that, because there have been instances
06:08 that a man even has valid doubts. Oh, I caught my partner cheating. I have a reason to doubt.
06:15 Most times you will find out that after a DNA test has been conducted, the child actually
06:20 belongs to the man. There have been instances that the man even doubted the paternity of
06:24 the first born. And at the end of the day, the first second thought, thought is on the
06:28 thought that they discovered that there was a fraud.
06:31 As a means of curtailing these prevailing issues, it is crucial to implement laws to
06:35 regulate paternity fraud to ensure fairness, accountability and protect the rights of individuals
06:42 affected by misrepresented parentage.
06:45 The law is forward thinking. The law has to be proactive. What we would urge our legislators
06:50 to do is to ensure and mandate that there are laws guiding that at birth. DNA tests
06:57 will be conducted on newborn babies. Number two is that we should not have a law that
07:03 guides and directs when there are issues of paternity fraud. The law, there should be
07:09 punishment for it because it is unfair for one party to suffer over many years. You know,
07:15 there have been instances that people have even gone to jail as a result of not, because
07:20 you know that the Child Rights Act says that a child must be catered for. And there have
07:24 been instances, particularly some states like Ogun State, it is a criminal offence not to
07:29 take care of a child that you have given birth to. So in an instance that the man has gone
07:32 to jail for one or two months or three months for not taking care of the child that eventually
07:38 turned out not belonging to him, what happens? Because you cannot eat your cake and have
07:45 it. So there should be a provision to protect the men as well.
07:49 The ramifications of these deceitful acts extend from the families into our society.
07:54 Hence, it is essential to create an awareness of its emotional and social implications in
07:59 Nigeria. And even though there isn't a legal framework that directly guides this kind of
08:04 fraud, it is still important to seek legal guidance and employ proactive measures in
08:09 addressing this growing concern. For more interesting content, do visit our official
08:15 website at Guardian.ng. You can also follow us on all our social media platforms at Guardian
08:20 Nigeria from the Centre of Excellence. Khaled Bada for Guardian TV.
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