I Choose Me

At a Lagos workplace Linda and Bade pursue a romance that company policy forbids between colleagues. During a team meeting Bade leaves abruptly and returns with a ring to propose in the reception area before coworkers including Nkechi and a receptionist named Tracey. Linda accepts the proposal but Nkechi warns her that HR enforces a strict rule requiring one of them to resign. Linda, a four time employee of the month, refuses to be the one to quit and the couple argue that evening. Bade insists tradition demands he remain the breadwinner. Linda argues she has sacrificed her career for a marriage that has not yet begun. Two years later in I Choose Me the couple lives on the mainland far from Linda's island home and support system. Bade controls their joint finances and denies Linda money for basic needs such as hair maintenance. He forbids her from working or starting a business despite a promise to fund her venture. He mocks her redundancy and blames her for their childlessness before cheating with a woman named Inkechi. Linda's aunt visits repeatedly to urge patience and submission as wifely virtues and Linda's friend Tinu observes her deterioration. Desperate for autonomy Linda secretly accepts a remote auditing job through her friend Tino and earns her first independent income via an OPay account hidden from Bade. Bade discovers Linda's laptop and suspects fraud so he calls the Financial Crimes Unit to arrest her. Officers seize the laptop and demand passwords but the investigation reveals Linda is a legitimate auditor for a multinational corporation investigating internal fraud. Humiliated Bade turns to rage because she worked without his consent. In a heated living room confrontation Linda's aunt and Tinu side with Linda and expose Bade's abuse and Inkechi's impending move into the marital home. Linda declares Bade the worst mistake of her life and rejects the for better or worse vow as a weapon of oppression.