Couples register for marriage on Valentine's Day

GEORGE TOWN: It was an all-Malaysian setting as couples from diverse backgrounds had their marriages registered in conjunction with the worldwide celebration of Valentine's Day here.
At the Penang's National Registration Department (JPN), 15 couples registered their intention to marry, with many citing the special day for lovers as the logical day for them to formalise their loving relationships.
State JPN director Nur Zulfa Ibrahim said that this is the fourth time that they had organised such an event, with the first event happening on Oct 10, 2010, followed by the second on Nov 11, 2011 then the last time, on Dec 12, 2012.
She added that many people may know JPN as a place to keep records of identification cards, birth certificates, death certificates, adoption certificates; however, the registering of marriages, are also available at JPN.
"The wedding registration service is convenient and available when needed," said Nur Zulfa.
Couple Tew Chin Khang and Tan Lean Hong have been in relationship for 14 years, having met when they were on the Universiti Malaya Kuala Lumpur campus.
Both of them are originally from Penang, and they have been residing in Singapore for 10 years.
They decided to get married a month ago on New Year's Day.
K. Prishanthini, 28, met her soon-to-be husband K. Mathanrajh, 30, through the shake feature in the popular instant messaging application WeChat, which allows users to meet people whenever the users shake their phone.
"There is one time I was on the road, then I used the shake feature in WeChat. I was surprised when Mathanrajh's name appear on my phone," said Prishanthini.
Prishanthini and Mathanrajh then decided to meet each other in Straits Quay, and have been dating for six months.
Mathanrajh proposed to Prishanthini May last year and set their wedding ceremony for Aug 24.
Janice Kum and Jayden Cheah are a couple who met each other in their workplace as colleagues, and have been in a relationship for 9 years from 2009.
"We choose to register our wedding registration today because it is easy to remember," said Cheah.