KOK Says Arranged Marriage Is Like Modern Day Slavery In Professor Johnbull

KOK

As another episode of popular television situation comedy, Professor Johnbull, sponsored by telecommunications giant, Globacom, airs this week, lead act of the series, Kanayo O. Kanayo, insists that arranged marriages are akin to modern day slavery and should be vehemently discouraged.

Titled Arranged Marriage, the episode will show at 6.00 p.m. on Sunday on DSTV Africa Magic Family and GOTV Channel 2. Repeat broadcasts come up on Thursday at9.30 p.m. and on NTA Network, NTA International on DSTV channel 251 and NTA on StarTimes at 8.30 p.m. on Tuesday and Friday as well as on Anambra Broadcasting Service at 8.30 p.m. on Wednesday and Saturday.

Worried by the professor’s bachelor status, three of his “proximate people" namely  Mai Doya (Funky Mallam), Etuk (Imeh Bishop) and Olaniyi (Yomi Fash-Lanso) wake up the age-old tradition of arranged marriages by deciding to provision  Etuk's unmarried sister who resides in Abuja for a romantic relationship with the retired academic who had previously  lost his wife.

In the same vein, Abadnego’s mother, convinced that "a man who can grow beards is old enough to marry", pays the bride price of a village girl and brings her to Enugu for her son to engage in conjugal ties.
.
Etuk's sister lands in Enugu to discover that Professor Johnbull was not involved in the arrangement just as Abadnego rejects the village girl married for him by his dotting mother.

The episode is a critique of the old tradition whereby parents and relations arrange partners for their children or relations deemed to be of marriage age but have failed to strike marital relations to raise families of their own.

Viewers will find out if Professor Johnbull actually requires a wife, if he is indeed lonely and sad as a result of his status as a widower and how well he receives Etuk’s sister. Also, questions will be raised on how two complete strangers can make good marriage partners, whether matchmaking is old fashioned or still relevant in contemporary time as well as the relevance of compatibility in matchmaking.

Similarly, Abadnego’s mother's assertion that "love comes to marriage when children begin to come in” will also be put to question in the engaging episode.