The wedding of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s daughter Kahiyang Ayu to Muhammad Bobby Afif Nasution is being greeted with great enthusiasm by the public.
Surakartans started gathering early in the morning along the street in front of Jokowi’s private residence on Jl. Kutai Utara, Sumber, where the President, accompanied by First Lady Iriana, is scheduled to conduct a Javanese ritual to hang bleketepe (row of plaited coconut leaves) at 8 a.m. local time on Tuesday.
Several other rituals, including siraman (bathing of the bride), will follow today’s traditional wedding procession, which will be attended only by Jokowi’s immediate family and relatives.
Around 1,200 members of the Pro-Jokowi (Projo) volunteer group were reported to have arrived at Purwosari Station in Surakarta on Tuesday morning. They were transported on 30 buses to the Donohudan Haj Dormitory in Boyolali, where they will stay for the duration of the wedding until Wednesday.
The decorating of Graha Saba Buana, the wedding venue owned by President Jokowi’s family, was reportedly completed on Tuesday.
“The akad nikah or ijab qabul [Islamic matrimony] will be conducted at Graha Saba Buana at 8 a.m. on Wednesday. The President will give his daughter’s hand in marriage.”
“Vice President Jusuf Kalla will act as the witness for the bride while Coordinating Economic Minister Darmin Nasution will be the witness for the groom,” said Quirinto Endy, coordinator of journalists covering the wedding.
