It was really a laughable matter but neither of us was laughing. I was staring at the slightly irritated face of the Divisional Police Officer sitting behind his desk. His hands were clasped tightly on the table as though he was literally holding firm to his resolve. From outside the window of his office, I could hear a woman arguing with a police officer. ‘Oga I no go dey serve you food again if you no pay all the moni wey you owe me o. Ah ahn? Wetin? Only you N2,000. Even Oga Ifeanyi don pay his own moni. Na only you remain’ To which he replied, ‘Shut up there joor. Na who dey give you mouth? I get person like you at home, and she no fit dey talk to me like this. So just shut up there.’

I looked at the D.P.O. in front of me and said, ‘Sir, just so that I am not mistaken, I’ll repeat what you just told me, to your hearing.’ He raised a brow and clasped his hands tighter. I continued. ‘So you’re saying, that I cannot stand as a surety for my sister’s husband who was, by the way, wrongfully arrested by your officers. And I cannot stand for him simply because I’m a woman, and for no other reason?’

He sighed as though he had heard those words over and over again. “Listen to me, madam. You cannot take this out on me. It is the practice. The people before me and the people before the people before me have never let a woman stand as a surety. A woman cannot and will not stand as a surety for a suspect; just take it from me, madam. I am not the one that will let you (he unclasped his hand and did a sweeping gesture at me) stand to enter bond on behalf of this man.”

I was shaking visibly at this point. I used to think I had a broad mind; a creative mind that could entertain all sorts. Heck, I have a Ph.D in Biomedical Informatics. But there I was, sitting in a stuffy room somewhere in Ogbomosho, not understanding what this man before me was saying. ‘Is there a law that provides for this? Is there a written law to this effect? Because God knows I’d like to see it’

He began arranging his scattered desk, ignoring me. A sergeant walked into the office and saluted. ‘Sir, there’s a woman here to see you, sir. Mrs Fola Folawoye. She said her husband sent her.’ The D.P.O dismissed him with a sign that probably meant he could bring the visitor in.

‘Excuse me?’ I said. No answer. ‘Sir, I am talking to you’, I tried again, this time endeavouring to keep the anger out of my voice knowing fully well that the freedom of my brother-in-law depended on it.

I heard the sound of a woman’s footsteps approaching and turned around. The said Mrs Fola Folawoye walked in and greeted the D.P.O pleasantly. He told her to sit down and I began to gather my bags. In my head, I was already writing articles, I was petitioning, starting a thread on twitter, anticipating feminist comments, clapping back to any stupid retorts, trailer jamming any stray commenter…

‘Miss…or Mrs Dania’, the D.P.O. said bringing me back to the stuffy office, ‘It’s good that you’re here when this woman came (he pointed at Mrs Fola Folawoye). She also had a niece in custody, and when she came to stand as surety I told her what I have told you too. Do you know what she did?’ he narrowed his eyes like someone who was about to say something profound, ‘She went home and begged her husband to come and stand instead.’

I gave a sarcastic laugh before I could stop myself. ‘That’s good for you madam’ I said to Mrs Fola Folawoye who was smiling at me now. I stood up and walked out.

As my driver, Abdul was pulling out of the carpark, Mrs Fola Folawoye stepped out beside my car and said, ‘I know how disgusting it sounds. I mean, they say a surety should simply have a known address, good character and must be acceptable, and then they say in the same breath that a woman cannot stand as surety. But then what they say is final, plus you know women are too emotional sef, so it may be to help us.’

I nodded and said, ‘That’s good for you madam. Abdul, please get us out of here.’

 ************

By its 2011 Administration of Criminal Justice Law [Section 118(3)], Lagos state has expressly put an end to the unwritten law and the practice of denying a woman the opportunity to stand as surety to grant an accused, bail. And apart from the Federal Government following suit in 2015 concerning federal offences, offences before federal courts and offences in FCT, no other state in Nigeria has legislated on this matter.

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Adeboro is a graduate of Law, a photographer and a collector of experiences. You probably, most likely, already know her.