Opinions range from mild disapproval to vehement declarations of wrongdoing against 2face and his bride and some seem reasonable on the surface while others are just simply ridiculous.
Some people are of the opinion that the wedding should have taken place in Nigeria so that Nigerians would have been able to benefit from the economic implications. This argument is hinged on the belief that 2face has supposedly made the bulk of his fortune in Nigeria and should therefore use his wedding as an opportunity to “give back to society”.
Let us not forget however that a grand traditional wedding was held at the bride’s hometown of Eket in Akwa-Ibom, here in Nigeria.
The traditional wedding has been estimated to have cost about 130 million naira (900 hundred thousand dollars or about 500 thousand British pounds). You can view the breakdown here.
If after staging a party which distributed almost a million dollars into the hands of Nigerian event planners, Nigerian hotels, Nigerian cooks, Nigerian musicians etc., you still believe the Idibias did not do well, I encourage you, when or if you can afford it, to never go on a holiday abroad, or to never to buy an imported item, just because you want to spend all the money you earn in Nigeria, in Nigeria!
Another school of thought was of the opinion that by choosing to have his white wedding abroad, 2face, one of the most celebrated Nigerian, and in fact African contemporary musician seemed to imply that Nigeria was not good enough to stage his wedding.
If a foreigner who is not used to the “Nigerian system” or who does not live in Nigeria says such a thing, they may be excused. I however do not believe that someone who lives here in Nigeria; who has been to the Obudu Cattle Ranch in Calabar; who has stepped into the Sheraton Hotel and Towers in Lagos; who has seen the insides of the Nicon Hilton in Abuja; who has seen the “movers and shakers” of Nigeria in action, who has seen the way affluent Nigerians “run things” can say that there is NO location in the WHOLE of Nigeria that is not, or cannot be made to look as grandiose, regal or resplendent as any location in Dubai.
Well, maybe the skyscrapers, but I’ve not heard that the Idibias held their wedding in or on a skyscraper, so that is obviously not why they went to Dubai.
I realize that it may be a new terrain for Nigerians- and that is probably why the Idibias did it, just to do something never done before, something remarkable- but it is nothing new even in the world of foreign celebrities
England’s world renowned footballer and Manchester united striker, Wayne Rooney, got married to Coleen McLoughlin, who is also from England in Italy.
Singer Mariah Carey and actor Nick Cannon, both Americans, got married in the Bahamas.
Popular German-American model, Heidi Klum and Seal, a British Singer with a Nigerian heritage got married in Mexico.
Tom Cruise got married to Katie Holmes in Italy.
American pop start Pink got married to Carey Hart in Costa Rica.
Katy Perry and Russell Brand had their wedding in India.
Alicia Keys and popular hip-hop producer, Swizz Beatz held a star studded wedding in Corsica, an island in the south of France.
Need I say more?
Note that in the examples given above, some celebrities who are from developed countries actually chose to have their weddings in less developed countries.
Why would anyone, celebrity or otherwise chose to have their wedding abroad?
It may be because of a sense of adventure, the yearning to try something new, something special and rarely or never before done
It may also be as a remarkable and memorable way to mark a special and momentous occasion, after all, it’s a once in a life time thing.
But it is certainly not because they can’t find an ideal location in their country……at least not in the case of the Idibias.
The most ridiculous comments I’ve seen are from some people (they were probably joking anyway) who are apparently annoyed the wedding was not held in Nigeria because they have been denied the opportunity to wine and dine at the wedding. In case they don’t know, I am pleased to inform them that even if the wedding had been held in Nigeria, the chances that such random figures would have been invited, or even allowed in if they decided to gatecrash is slimmer than the chance that
I wish 2face and Annie a happy married life.
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