Bandung – About 150 guests from throughout the nation attended the launch of the Indonesian branch of a controversial international polygamy club during an upscale get together here on Saturday night.

Chodijah Binti Am, chairwoman of the Malaysian Global Ikhwan Polygamy Club, was also present at the launch at the Grand Aquila Hotel attended by guests from Papua, Jakarta and Tasikmalaya in West Java.

"Polygamy as panacea to win the love of God" was the theme of the night, and the organizers also arranged a music concert and an explanation about polygamy for the uninitiated.

Chodijah said she also planned to open other branches throughout Indonesia. "Before inaugurating this polygamy club in Bandung, I traveled throughout Indonesia to convey the mission of polygamy," she said.

She said the club in Malaysia currently had 300 members from various countries, including Indonesia, Australia, Singapore, the Middle East and Thailand.

However, authorities in Malaysia are reportedly wary of the club, believing it to be a front for the notorious Al-Arqam cult, which was banned in 1994 for teachings practices considered deviant by mainstream Islam.

Al-Arqam was founded in 1969 by Ashaari Muhamad, who claimed to be the Imam Mahdi, or the heir to the Prophet Muhammad.

One of Ashaari's wives, polygamy club co-founder Hatija Aam, told reporters from the New Strait Times that "Polygamy is a most practical approach, an effective cure to a woman's desire."