- Wartawan Nabalu News
HAJIJI'S ANNOUNCEMENT CONFUSES TRADERS, CONSUMERS
29 June 2021
By Wartawan Nabalu News
KOTA KINABALU: The Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) Government spearheaded by Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor today received public backlashes for causing confusion among traders and consumers of the food and beverages industry.
Yesterday, he announced that more economic sectors, including dine-ins in eatery outlets, will be allowed from today onwards.
However, official authorities have not issued any dine-in standard operating procedures (SOPs) and eatery businesses were told to cease operations, Nabalu News learned.
A screenshot of a WhatsApp conversation posted by Facebook user who inquired the Sabah National Security about the dine-in permission went viral on social media today. In the conversation, the council indicated that dine-ins are still not allowed today and asked to wait for the latest SOPs.
Several Sabahans took to Twitter to express confusion over Hajiji's announcement. One user said: "Chief Minister of Sabah yesterday announced that dine-ins are allowed, however, we still need to wait for the later SOPs as if the Movement Control Order (MCO) just started yesterday.
It was also reported that many shops around Kota Kinabalu area, especially Luyang were told not to allow patrons to dine in yet although tables have been set up for the purpose.
Enforcement officers were believed to have warned restaurant operators not to allow dine-ins just yet, otherwise, they will be slapped with compounds.
A source mentioned that thing went messy when operators were forced to shut down as they saw patroling officers coming towards them to avoid being fined while customers ran off halfway through their meals.
To keep their businesses going, eateries switched back to take-aways as they wait for new SOPs to be released.
