‘Immoral’ — Ekiti bans proposed 72-hour kissing marathon to break GWR

The government of Ekiti has banned a planned 72-hour kissing marathon in the state.

Tagged kiss-a-thon, the kissing marathon, said to be planned towards setting a Guinness World Record (GWR), is allegedly billed for July 7 in the state.

In a letter signed by A.L Adelusi on behalf of the ministry’s permanent secretary, and addressed to the secretary of the Ekiti state Hoteliers Association, the government described the event as “unhealthy, immoral”, and capable of denting the image of the state.

“The attention of the state government has been drawn to a planned hosting of “Kiss-a- thon’ in Ekiti state,” the statement reads.

“According to information at the disposal of this ministry, kiss-a-thon, a three-day kissing marathon event, has been scheduled to hold on 7th of July, 2023 at one of the hospitality outlets in the state.

“This event is said to be planned towards setting a Guinness World Record.

“Kiss-a-thon as an event is not only absurd, unhealthy, immoral and capable of denigrating the image of the state, it is a programme that runs counter to the values of the people of the state and therefore capable of plunging our youths morally backwards.

“In view of the foregoing, the ministry of arts, culture and tourism hereby prohibits the hosting of such event or any other events like it in any facility that wishes to continue to operate lawfully in Ekiti state.”

The ministry also asked the association to monitor the activities of its members to avoid causing embarrassment to the state government and the people.

“Sequel to the above, you are hereby requested to convey the content of this notice to the members of Ekiti state Hoteliers’ Association to effectively monitor their outlets against being used negatively to cause embarrassment to the government and people of Ekiti state,” the ministry added.

The Guinness World record for longest kissing lasted for 58 hours, 35 minutes and 58 seconds.

The competition took place in Thailand in 2013.

In June, Damilola Adeparusi, a chef from Ekiti, embarked on a 120-hour cooking marathon attempt.

Adeparusi commenced her cooking marathon on June 9 and ended it on June 14.

Her cooking marathon attracted different reactions from social media users, with some criticising her while others commended her for making an attempt.

The development came after Hilda Baci, a chef, pulled off a 100-hour attempt to set a world record for the longest cooking marathon by an individual.