- Kebbi State Government confirmed plans to host a mass wedding for 300 couples
- N180,000 dowry and essential household items to be provided
- TheRadar compiled some of the public reactions, with many criticising and questioning the government’s priorities
Public reactions have continued to flood following the Kebbi State Government’s announcement of a mass wedding for 300 couples, scheduled for February 27.
The Chairman of the Organising Committee, Alhaji Suleiman Argungu, confirmed the news on Sunday, February 9 in Birnin Kebbi.
Kebbi to host mass wedding for 300 couples
He revealed that the event was being organised with the Nafisa Nasir Charity Development Foundation (NANAS), a non-governmental organisation.
“The administration of Gov. Idris is going to provide N180,000 as dowry for each bride from the 21 Local Government Areas of the state.
“Other additional items will be provided such as room furniture and foodstuffs to all the couples to consolidate their marital relationship.
“The wedding will be solemnised after wide consultations with Islamic scholars in consonance with the practice of the Noble Prophet of Islam, Muhammad (SAW),” Argungu said.
Argungu further explained that several committees have been established to oversee critical aspects of the preparation, including conducting pregnancy tests, genotype screenings, HIV/AIDS tests, and other legal requirements for marriage in the state.
He noted that the mass wedding was part of a commitment made by Governor Nasir Idris during the previous mass wedding event, where he pledged to hold such ceremonies periodically to assist less privileged individuals in getting married.
The announcement has drawn widespread reactions online. An X user (formerly Twitter) criticised the initiative, saying, “Honestly, Nigerian politicians were made differently...lol. Mass Wedding over Mass Empowerment/Employment!”
TheRadar compiled other public reactions showing widespread debate over the priorities of the state government below:
Netizens react to mass wedding in Kebbi
“Northern Nigeria governors always sponsor mass weddings and give free wheelbarrows as empowerment. They are a bunch of disgrac£d peopl£ with nothing to offer their people. You wonder why the region is in that terrible situation. When you have clu£less people as leaders in the position of policy-making decisions that is what you get,” Fomax1 stated.
“A person who can't sponsor their own wedding should not get married talk less of raising kids in poverty. The government aids poverty,” Concerned Citizen (Atheist) stated.
“If only they can sponsor the 600 in an intensive vocational program like tech, engineering, IT or fashion design. But we all know it’s an avenue to loot,” Joe stated.
“Most of the children from these unions inevitably end up on the streets as Almajiri (beggars). While the region's leaders or people may try to paint a different picture of almajiri as an islamic school, the harsh reality remains these children are beggars, nothing less.
Furthermore, Birnin Kebbi resembles an ancient, forgotten city, severely lacking development across all sectors. Rather than prioritising critical infrastructure and economic growth, the governor is more focused on sponsoring mass weddings for people who can barely take care of themselves.
How do we end up with such leaders? When any policy is proposed to reduce the state's dependence on federal funds, they vehemently oppose it because they've failed to lay the groundwork for self-sustainability, relying solely on handouts from the federation account,” Murph stated.
“Na waiting dey cus Bandit for una state keep sponsoring mass wedding instead of mass employment and quality education, what type of human being are you guys!!” Foster reacted.
Bauchi, Kebbi, Sokoto, 7 other states with highest inflation in October 2024
Meanwhile, TheRadar earlier reported that Nigeria’s inflation rate increased to 33.88 per cent in October 2024.
TheRadar spotlighted the ten states where core and food inflation rates were the highest.