Malacca
Chief Minister Mohd Ali Rustam has rubbished claims by various parties
as to the over-the-top nature of his son’s eight-hour wedding banquet
last Sunday, which reportedly attracted some 130,000 guests.
Instead, Ali (left) said that the function was not extravagant, but was, in fact, “cheap to organise”.
He told English daily The Star that, “the wedding just looked grand because of the number of people who attended”.
Ali’s special secretary MS Mahadevan, in the meantime, denied to The Star that anyone was “forced” to attend the do, not even civil servants in the state.
Many people attended the banquet, he said, as they had wanted to congratulate the chief minister’s eldest son, Mohd Ridhwan, 26, and his bride Nur Azieha Mohd Ali, also 26.
“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 bridegroom,” Mahadevan had said, further stating that 500 people had volunteered while many of the caterers and other businesses provided their services for free.
'Feast costs RM600,000'
The event took place at Dewan Tun Ali in Bukit Katil and the host of people it attracted included the Sultan of Selangor, several cabinet ministers and a number of other VIPs while songstress Siti Nurhaliza performed at the event.
The sheer volume of those attending the feast made it into the Malaysia Book of Records, which certified it as the biggest crowd ever recorded at a wedding, outdoing even Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's Aidilfitri open house (left) this year, which reportedly attracted 100,000 people.
This prompted several opposition lawmakers to urge the chief minister to reveal the cost of the ‘mega kenduri’.
Meanwhile, in The Malay Mail, Ali claimed the feast cost RM600,000 and not RM1.3million as ventured by Pakatan Rakyat leaders, nor even RM13 million as speculated by DAP national adviser Lim Kit Siang in a Twitter posting.
Ali was quoted as saying Lim had probably, “never had a chance to attend any Malay wedding with kampung-style cooking.
"He might have attended a dinner serving shark's fin soup at RM100 per head, that's why he could not understand".
The chief minister explained to The Malay Mail that he had hired 30 chefs who could cook nasi beriani campur for up to 2,000 guests each at RM10 per head.
As each serving was capable of feeding three people, he said, the wedding feast could cater up to 180,000 guests if need be.
He even joked about the Book of Records certification, stating, “If I get married, maybe more people will attend my wedding”.
On whether he had sponsors, he said companies had advertised their products in the wedding souvenir book.
"As advertisers, they have to pay the advertisement cost by giving away products, such as 50,000 cans of Kacip Fatimah drinks," he informed The Malay Mail, citing Mamee Sdn Bhd and Orang Kampung Drinks Sdn Bhd as among the companies that advertised.
Instead, Ali (left) said that the function was not extravagant, but was, in fact, “cheap to organise”.He told English daily The Star that, “the wedding just looked grand because of the number of people who attended”.
Ali’s special secretary MS Mahadevan, in the meantime, denied to The Star that anyone was “forced” to attend the do, not even civil servants in the state.
Many people attended the banquet, he said, as they had wanted to congratulate the chief minister’s eldest son, Mohd Ridhwan, 26, and his bride Nur Azieha Mohd Ali, also 26.
“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 bridegroom,” Mahadevan had said, further stating that 500 people had volunteered while many of the caterers and other businesses provided their services for free.
'Feast costs RM600,000'
The event took place at Dewan Tun Ali in Bukit Katil and the host of people it attracted included the Sultan of Selangor, several cabinet ministers and a number of other VIPs while songstress Siti Nurhaliza performed at the event.
The sheer volume of those attending the feast made it into the Malaysia Book of Records, which certified it as the biggest crowd ever recorded at a wedding, outdoing even Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's Aidilfitri open house (left) this year, which reportedly attracted 100,000 people.This prompted several opposition lawmakers to urge the chief minister to reveal the cost of the ‘mega kenduri’.
Meanwhile, in The Malay Mail, Ali claimed the feast cost RM600,000 and not RM1.3million as ventured by Pakatan Rakyat leaders, nor even RM13 million as speculated by DAP national adviser Lim Kit Siang in a Twitter posting.
Ali was quoted as saying Lim had probably, “never had a chance to attend any Malay wedding with kampung-style cooking.
"He might have attended a dinner serving shark's fin soup at RM100 per head, that's why he could not understand".
The chief minister explained to The Malay Mail that he had hired 30 chefs who could cook nasi beriani campur for up to 2,000 guests each at RM10 per head.
As each serving was capable of feeding three people, he said, the wedding feast could cater up to 180,000 guests if need be.He even joked about the Book of Records certification, stating, “If I get married, maybe more people will attend my wedding”.
On whether he had sponsors, he said companies had advertised their products in the wedding souvenir book.
"As advertisers, they have to pay the advertisement cost by giving away products, such as 50,000 cans of Kacip Fatimah drinks," he informed The Malay Mail, citing Mamee Sdn Bhd and Orang Kampung Drinks Sdn Bhd as among the companies that advertised.
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