An extravagant wedding that recently took place in my hometown in Huong Son district, in the central province of Ha Tinh, has raised public concerns for several reasons.
On a positive note, locals in a poor area like Huong Son suddenly could participate in a festive event. Had it not been for this wedding, they would have never seen in person celebrity singers like Dam Vinh Hung, Phi Nhung or Manh Quynh, whose names they had only heard on the radio or TV. Had it not been for this wedding, they would have never seen cars worth more than their 10,000 buffalos. This was a chance to bring civilization to the countryside.
Anyway, the wedding was organized at someone’s personal expense, without using government funds as some officials have done, so why bother worrying? Besides, tens of billions of dong spent on the market can boost today’s gloomy economic situation.
Another extravagant wedding, this time in the central province of Quang Binh, helped a small trader sell 300 kilos of unrefined salt, which was later used to make fried tortoise with pepper and salt. It is better the rich in these areas spend money in their hometown, instead of keeping it under their bed or depositing it in a Swiss bank.
Nevertheless, the sad thing is that having celebrities and posh cars at the wedding was to emphasize one thing: “Dear everyone, I am rich!” I bet locals in Ha Tinh have known this fact for a long time, and probably even know how these magnates got rich.
Are those rich people trying to show that they despise poor people? Although it was not on purpose, the way they flashed their wealth was due to their insensitivity and short thinking. In some way, they indirectly affirm the widening gap between the rich and poor in Vietnam.
We know that in America there are more luxurious and costly weddings. But America is a rich country and it is a part of their culture. Spending extravagantly among thousands of poor people in Huong Son is a ridiculous way to prove one thing: “I have more money than you.”
Nguyen Quang Than
Source: Tuoi Tre
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