Fong Shi Chiang (left) and Janet Ngu (right) exchanging their rings as Chiu looks on. – Photo by Jane Moh
SIBU (May 20): The pandemic has put a damper on the Chinese Valentine’s Day here today with only a few lucky couples allowed to register their marriage on the premises of Chinese associations unlike in the past when hundreds of couples will tie the knot in mass weddings.
At the Sarawak Kutien Association, Marriage Registrar Chiu Ing Siong said the association had actually received many queries from couples who wanted to register their marriage at its premises this year but due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the association had to limit its service.
“Today, six couples will tie their knots. Due to the pandemic, we can only allocate one couple and two witnesses to come according to the scheduled time. This is to keep everyone safe,” he told reporters when met at the association.
Chiu also said that the first appointment was at 10am and the last appointment at 3pm.
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The first couple to register their marriage was Fong Shi Chiang, 26 and Janet Ngu, 26.
According to Fong, they both were once classmates and now had been together for seven years.
They said at the moment, they had yet to make a decision on when to hold a reception due to the pandemic.
“I think May 20 is quite an interesting date. It is Chinese Valentine’s Day, we will remember this date forever,” Fong said.
Asked whether they felt regret that their parents could not attend the registration ceremony, Fong said it was fine as long as the registration process ran smoothly.
Meanwhile, five couples also tied the knot at Mingchiang Tunhion Huay Sibu Association today.
One of the couples is James Tiong Wu Chiong, 27, and Ting Hei Siong, 23, who had been together for seven years.
According to Tiong, they planned to register for their marriage on May 14, last year, which is of them becoming a couple.
However, it had to be cancelled due to the Movement Control Order (MCO).
“Then, we decided to wait for May 14, this year, but it was the Raya celebration and the association was not open. So, we decided to reschedule and found out that May 20 should be a good date.
“I personally think that May 20 is a beautiful date. I initially would like it to be May 14 because it was our anniversary date of being together,” Tiong said.
Marriage registrar Moh Siew Ngiik conducted the registration process.
Moh said the pandemic had disrupted many plans for the past two years.
“This year, the number of couples applying for marriage registration dwindled a lot. Moreover, the Registration Department was also closed so many times, so no registration could be done,” she said.
She also said that she tried to make the registration ceremony as simple as possible this time.