Public affairs analyst and former presidential aide, Reno Omokri, has stirred public debate once again with his latest commentary on traditional marriage practices, claiming that only virgins can rightly be called brides, both by African customs and Scriptural standards.
In a post shared on his social media page, Omokri asserted, “As a man, by African tradition and Scriptural law, you can marry a woman who is not a virgin. But such a woman is not a bride. And you should not pay any bride price for her.”
To support his position, he referenced 1 Samuel 18:20–27, where David paid a bride price for King Saul’s daughter, contrasting it with 1 Samuel 25:40–42, where no such payment was made for Abigail. He interpreted this as a biblical precedent that the bride price is linked to virginity.
He went further to say, “If you read Scripture, the term ‘bride’ is never used for a woman who is not a virgin.” Quoting Isaiah 62:5, he wrote: “For as a young man marries a virgin, so your sons shall marry you; and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so your God will rejoice over you.”
Omokri also cited Jeremiah 2:32: “Can a virgin forget her ornaments, or a bride her attire?” emphasising that biblical usage equates bridehood with purity.
Another passage he referenced was Song of Solomon 4:12: “A locked up garden is my sister, my bride; a locked up spring, a sealed fountain.” According to him, this verse symbolises chastity as a requirement for being called a bride.
He warned that Africa’s moral fabric is under threat due to a disregard for such values. “If we in Africa do not return to these traditions and continue the moral decadence in our society, where sex and sensuality are not curtailed, we will continue to be the dregs of the world, with high rates of sexually transmitted diseases,” he cautioned.
Omokri did not stop at cultural definitions. He also addressed what he sees as misplaced priorities in wedding practices. In his words, “A White wedding is not our culture in Africa, and it is not a Christian wedding. It is purely a European traditional wedding.”
He explained that if Africans must adopt the White wedding format, it should be done in the way it is practiced in its place of origin. “In Europe, from where we got the practice, it is NOT the man or his family that pays for a White wedding. Customarily, it is the bride’s father who foots the bill.”
Ending with a dig at some cultural practices that monetise marriage, he said: “Industrial Money Obtainers, I hope you have heard?”
Omokri’s statement has reignited conversations about marriage, morality, and cultural authenticity, drawing both praise and criticism from different corners of the public.
