http://www.arabnews.com/graft-probe-after-130000-attend-malaysia-wedding
Graft probe after 130,000 attend Malaysia wedding Agencies Sunday 7 October 2012 KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s anti-graft body is investigating the wedding of a top official’s son — attended by around 130,000 people — after opposition politi- cians questioned the celebration’s funding. The wedding on Sunday of Ridhwan Ali, 26, eldest son of Ali Rustam, chief minister of the southern state of Malacca, reportedly lasted eight hours and made it into the Malaysia Book of Records for its massive turnout. Opposition politicians have since questioned whether state funds were used for the event, and several of them lodged a report with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission. A senior commission official confirmed to AFP on Friday that an investigation had been launched. The minister has been quoted in local media defending the traditional Malay ceremony, saying food had cost some 600,000 ringgit ($200,000) — and not 13 million ringgit as senior opposition politician Lim Kit Siang had speculated. “(The opposition) should not be jealous of the huge crowd... The wedding was my own family arrangement and has nothing to do with the state government,” Ali was quoted as saying by The Star daily newspaper. His aide M.S. Mahadevan reportedly said ear- lier this week that 500 people had volun- teered to help out at the event free of charge. “This is the first wedding ceremony for the chief minister’s family and every Malaccan wanted to take part... Even estate workers wearing slippers stood in line to shake hands with the bride and bride- groom,” he said. -+++++++ http://www.arabnews.com/hanoi-communists-face-ban-opulent-weddings Hanoi communists face ban on opulent weddings a.. A bride poses for a wedding photo album in front of a colonial style hotel, rickshaw and old cars in downtown Hanoi. (AFP) Agencies Wednesday 10 October 2012 HANOI: Vietnamese authorities have banned Communist Party members in the capital Hanoi from organizing lavish wedding parties, following a public backlash over extravagant nuptials. The number of guests is limited to 600 for both families and expensive venues such as five-star hotels should be avoided, according to a notice on the Hanoi city’s official website seen yesterday. Lavish weddings organized by party members have “caused anger among the public and badly hurt the personal prestige of party members,” it said. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
