Veteran Nigerian actor Pete Edochie has criticised the practice of men kneeling to propose marriage, arguing that the gesture amounts to giving the woman headship of the family.
Edochie made the comment during an appearance on Curiosity Made Me Ask, hosted by Is Bae U.
He compared kneeling during a marriage proposal to the way Catholics kneel when entering a church.
“If you step down on your knee and you offer a woman a ring, you are conceding headship of the family to that woman,” he said.
According to Edochie, many people who support the practice do not understand what the gesture represents.
He also linked the practice to marriage patterns in Western countries, saying some women can receive a significant share of a man’s property when a marriage ends.
“So if your wife decides to divorce you, she’s entitled to maybe half or 75% of what you have,” he said.
