‘Not wearing the wedding ring is no disrespect to marriage’

Some married men in the federal capital territory (FCT) believe that not wearing the wedding ring does not count as disrespect to the marriage bond.

The residents, who spoke to NAN on Monday, said marriage rings are a mere symbol.

Ikenna Ibegbu, a businessman, said that he dislikes the idea of wearing any kind of jewellery.

“Personally, I don’t appreciate the idea of wearing jewellery on my body because they make me uncomfortable,” he said.

“I prefer to leave my hands bare and that does not mean I don’t respect the sacredness of marriage. Women are the ones that are conscious of wearing jewellery and the ring is just a symbol.”

According to Ibegbu, wearing the marriage ring can be discomforting but some men do so to respect their spouse.

George Edem, a banker, said most men do not wear their marriage ring due to the nature of their jobs.

“There are men who will hardly wear their marriage rings because of the kind of jobs they do; it can be discomforting to them while working,” he said.

“You will hardly find a doctor that constantly wears his marriage ring because their job requires pulling it at intervals to wash hands and do other things.

“For that kind of person, he will rather keep the ring in a safe place than removing it at intervals, which can make him lose it.”

He also said there were some men who would use the ring as a pendant for a necklace rather than misplace it.

Edem said that jewellery are generally perceived to be a feminine thing.

He said most men who rarely wear their marriage ring gain weight over the years, hence the ring no longer fits.

Henry Okpala, a computer engineer, said he often forget to put on his marriage ring.

“I don’t forget that I am married because I live with the consciousness always,” he said.

“So slipping a metal band on my left hand to signify the obvious is not a huge priority for me. If I am making my marriage a priority, the ring does not matter.”

Evangeline Udoka, a fashion designer, said “80 per cent of men have put on weight after marriage, so the wedding ring no longer fit them”.

“When they were single, they ate food occasionally and their fingers were slimmer compared to when they got married and ate regularly,” he said.

“The constant feeding contributed to their weight gain and their fingers outgrow the size of the ring. Besides, men always want to present themselves as single to cheat on their spouse while others don’t regard the ring as a show of marriage.”

She said that women are keener in buying a new one to replace the old rings when their finger outgrows it.

However, she said there are honest men who do not cheat on their spouse yet view wearing of the wedding ring as abnormal.