Why I am not married at 41 – Chude Jideonwo

By Enitan Abdultawab

Chude Jideonwo has shared why he has remained unmarried at 41, revealing that he came close to tying the knot in his twenties but is now grateful things didn’t work out that way.

Speaking in a recent interview with BBC News Pidgin, the media entrepreneur said he is not yet ready for marriage and intends to keep it private if it ever happens.

“I am not ready to get married, and unfortunately for them, the day I will get married, nobody will know,” he said.

Reflecting on his younger years, Jideonwo disclosed that he almost married twice, even going so far as to plan pre-introduction ceremonies.

“When I was about twenty-something years old, I almost got married, but thank God that I did not. I almost did a pre-introduction; I was ready on two separate occasions.

“But later I realised that there are some people who are not supposed to get married and there are some people who are not supposed to get married at all, at a particular time. And if you rush, you would enter trouble,” he added.

Looking back, Jideonwo admitted that getting married at 25 would likely have led to regrets.

“If I had gotten married at that time when I was 25, I would have regretted it because even as I was discovering myself, I realised that there were certain things you needed to do in a marriage that I was not in that state of mind.”

The media figure has been more open in recent times about his personal journey, including speaking about his experience living with Tourette’s syndrome and addressing the stigma often attached to it.