Foremost administrator and chartered accountant, Francis Oluwagbenro Meshioye,the Olori Oluwo (Supreme Leader) of the Reformed Ogboni Fraternity has opened up on how new members are inducted into the fraternity. Speaking in a recent interview on the criteria used to induct new members, Meshioye said, “The criteria are to ensure that your lifestyle is acceptable to the fraternity. One of the first things you will be asked is do you believe in God? If your answer is no, you will be rejected at that point because that is contrary to our belief. We believe in God and an upright lifestyle.
“The willingness to live an upright life is vital and you can’t do that if you don’t have a good job, you are not industrious and don’t have a good character. We are not perfect but we are striving to fine-tune our ways. Ogboni teaches you to be tolerant and respect other people’s viewpoints. We are taught to be law abiding. No judge, if he’s a member, would overturn a case involving a member who sets out to commit a criminal act.”
When Archdeacon T.A J. Ogunbiyi started the fraternity on December 18, 1914, he named it Ogboni Onigbagbo. According to Meshioye, the name changed to Reformed Ogboni Fraternity because ” At that time, there were only few Christian members in the fold but soon after its inauguration, they realised it’s not meant for Christians alone. It’s a cultural heritage and you can’t restrict heritage to religion. In Yoruba culture, we have Christians, Muslims and other faiths. That was why it was changed to Reformed Ogboni Fraternity to accommodate people of different religious leanings, race and political affiliation. It is incorporated and recognised under Nigerian law.”
