ADRIAN MA, HOST:
Throwing money at couples during their wedding dance is a beloved tradition in Nigeria. And, in fact, money spraying, as it's called, also happens at other celebrations where people want to show affection and offer financial support. And that is why many Nigerians are upset with a recent government crackdown on this practice. NPR's Jewel Bright explains.
JEWEL BRIGHT, BYLINE: Newlyweds Dami (ph) and Peter (ph) are having their first dance at their wedding reception in Ikeja, a suburb in Nigeria's commercial megacity, Lagos. The atmosphere is festive as family and friends dressed in colorful, traditional clothes join the couple on the dance floor.
UNIDENTIFIED MUSICAL ARTIST: (Singing in non-English language).
BRIGHT: But guests at the wedding say something is missing.
ROWLAND ADEBAYO: If you are not a Nigerian and you've not been to a Nigerian party before, especially wedding, you'll see a lot of money on the ground, money flowing here and there.
BRIGHT: Thirty-four-year-old Rowland Adebayo (ph) is the brother of the bride. He says the dance floor would usually be covered in naira notes.
ADEBAYO: For a wedding, your friends, family - they are coming to celebrate you. They believe spraying you - the bigger the amount of money they spray, the higher they believe they value you as a person. So that's how it used to be. It's a show of love, symbol of love and appreciation.
BRIGHT: But not at today's wedding. Spraying money is no longer allowed. Violators could face up to six months in prison or a 50,000 naira fine. It's a law that Adebayo says has dampened festivities at his sister's wedding and thrown away decades of tradition.
ADEBAYO: I grew up seeing, you know, friends, family, even people that we don't know - we attend parties and people spray money.
BRIGHT: Nigeria's money spraying culture goes back generations. No one knows exactly when or how it started, but over the years, it became the highlight of every festive event.
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UNIDENTIFIED NARRATOR: The naira should not be abused by being sprayed or danced on at parties.
BRIGHT: A ban has been in place since 2007. Government-aired adverts warned against the practice, aimed at curbing the abuse of Nigeria's currency.
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UNIDENTIFIED NARRATOR: Now you know. Spread the message.
BRIGHT: But for years, it was largely ignored. That all changed last year. With a new government came a crackdown - high-profile arrests, convictions. And parties are now under watch.
DANIEL NDUKA: I could not even believe they would arrest me for that.
BRIGHT: Thirty-year-old Daniel Nduka (ph) was arrested last year for spraying money at his girlfriend's birthday party.
NDUKA: As we were about to leave, some guys just came in and told me that they were the police, and I had committed a crime by spraying money.
BRIGHT: Daniel wasn't charged after he paid the officers who arrested him. But he says the incident exposed an ugly side of the money-tossing crackdown.
NDUKA: They're not only destroying our fun and culture, but they're also extorting us. The police collected money from me.
BRIGHT: Nigerian authorities have also been accused of applying the law selectively. Earlier this year, the son of a wealthy businessman, who is also a close friend of Nigeria's president, was caught on camera spraying money. And despite public outrage, he wasn't charged.
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BRIGHT: Back at the wedding, guests quietly drop bills into large bags on the dance floor - a walk-around to honor tradition without risking jail. But that doesn't impress Adebayo.
ADEBAYO: The excitement, the joy, you know, that come with that spraying - you can't compare it to just dropping a bill inside a bag.
BRIGHT: He and many other Nigerians continue to long for the day when the culture they know and love will return.
Jewel Bright, NPR News, Lagos. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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