-
Paying Bride Price – Reno Omokri Stop Paying Bride Price for Non-Virgins’ – Reno Omokri .
-
Calls payment for non-virgins cultural distortion and extortion.
-
Cites Bible, Lukumi Yoruba customs to support his argument.
Former presidential aide and social commentator, Reno Omokri, has stirred controversy by urging men to stop paying bride price for women who are not virgins.
EDITOR’S PICKS
- Hailey Bieber Clears Air on $1 Billion Rhode Sale
- Presidential Jet Returns After Repaint In South Africa
- Osimhen Finally Set for €75m Permanent Galatasaray Move
EKO HOT BLOG reports that in a post on Sunday, Omokri argued that the practice of bride price, rooted in African traditions and biblical principles, was historically reserved for virgins.
He described the current trend of demanding money or property for women who are no longer virgins as “extortion” rather than a legitimate cultural practice.
“In African culture, and Jewish traditions and law, bride price is the property or money demanded by a bride’s family to give her away in marriage to her intended husband, on the grounds that she is a virgin,” he wrote.
Citing Exodus 22:17, Omokri added, “If her father absolutely refuses to give her to him, he must still pay the bride-price for virgins.”
He also referenced the Lukumi Yoruba custom, where a bride’s virginity is confirmed on the wedding night through the aso funfun (white cloth).
According to him, if the cloth is not stained to signify virginity, the marriage is deemed invalid, and the bride price must be refunded.
Omokri criticized what he described as “exorbitant demands” by some Sub-Saharan African communities for non-virgin brides, insisting that such practices distort the original meaning of the custom.
“The bride price tradition has been twisted,” he said, emphasizing that its essence lies in purity and cultural authenticity, not financial exploitation.
