Nana Kwabena Oppong Kyekyeku, Otumfuo’s Bonkum Sekyere Sanahene, has warned the public to be wary of those who claim to be Freemasons on social media platforms.

The traditional ruler, who is a member of the fraternity, expressed worry over the recent trend on social media where some scammers and fraudsters are duping people in the name of registering them to join the fraternity.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with Kwabena Agyapong on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM, he said the fraternity does not recruit members through social media, nor does it take registration fees.

Such activities, he noted, are fraudulent and do not emanate from their circles.

Nana Kwabena Oppong Kyekyeku, who is originally known as Bishop Elvis Oppong Sulemana, told the host that the activities have painted the fraternity in a bad light since some of those who use social media and traditional media to advertise these activities sometimes engage in certain activities that are not associated with the Freemasons.

“The scammers and fraudsters are the ones who have made us appear menacing. Some Nigerian films have also established a terrible image of us. The way they dress in the movies, as well as the activities they engage in, do not mirror our own. They’re all scammers and fraudsters. Do not fall victim.”

To this end, he has advised Ghanaians to stay away from such people because they are not members of the fraternity.

“We should be careful. The Freemasons do not accept members through social media. We don’t recruit members on social media or take registration fees to register people,” he said.

He also dispelled the rumours that they perform money and blood rituals to make their members wealthy.

He noted that this is an unfortunate claim made by ignorant people who have no understanding of their activities.

He explained that the fraternity does not make people wealthy or give people money through blood rituals.

He stated that the fraternity rather engages in humanitarian and philanthropic activities, and so they rather depend on members to donate towards these activities, including the construction of schools and other projects.

“Freemansons do not drink blood. We are not demons or evil. These are erroneous assertions. However, I am pleased when these allegations are made because, as a mason, when someone owes me money, they believe they must pay since we see ourselves as demons. But we’re not demons. We are not as evil as others claim. “We are good people,” he explained.

He continued: “We do not have any alter where we spill blood or perform any rituals on it. 95 percent of individuals speak from ignorance. They have not joined us, and they do not attend our meetings, yet they continue to make false allegations and claims against us. He noted that because the fraternity is not a religion, religious, or political organisation, it is solely open to members.

“Freemasonry is a fraternity, and it cannot be open to everyone. It is designated for a small number of members. You cannot join a group with which you are already involved. It does not happen that way. This is not a church. We’ve formed a fraternity, so why not join us and see what we’re up to? To me, it doesn’t make sense.”