As reported in the media across the Far East, the eight hour wedding ceremony and celebrations held last Sunday of Ridhwan Ali, the 26 year old eldest son of Ali Rustam, the minister in charge of the state of Malacca, Malaysia was attended by about 130,000 guests. The sheer number of guests got the wedding into not only various record books but also the current corruption investigation list of Malaysia’s Anti-Corruption Commission according to the AFP News Agency.
The number of guests was considered so egregious by opposition politicians that they submitted allegations that state funds must have been used to finance such a lavish event. A senior official of the Anti-Corruption Commission has confirmed that an investigation is underway. Ali Rustam vigorously denies corruption and puts the number of guests down to his popularity. “Even estate workers wearing slippers stood in line to shake hands with the bride and bridegroom,” he is reported as having said.
The honeymooners have not been arrested. Whether or not they could be handcuffed after so many handshakes is questionable; had each of them shaken the hand of each guest once every five seconds then using various assumptions (eg that they were both shaking hands with different guests simultaneously and had no rest room breaks) it would have taken more than a week to complete that part of the ceremony alone!
This article was first published on 6th October 2012.
