KUALA LUMPUR: Many restaurants in states under Phase 1 of the National Recovery Plan are hesitant to reopen for fully vaccinated people to dine despite the green light given by the government.
Malaysian Indian Restaurant Owners Association (Primas) deputy president C. Krishnan said only 30 per cent of the 4,000 operators under his association had opened due to fears and confusion over the policy.
"We are confused because when we asked to reopen while cases were in the range of 3,500 a day (early May) and had yet to breach the 10,000 mark (mid-July), we were not allowed to.
"But now at the height of record-breaking cases and deaths they are allowing us to reopen, what is the government's logic? Even those who didn't fold and had suffered great losses are opting to sit this out until there is clarity," he told the New Straits Times yesterday.
Krishnan said the operators were mostly afraid about what would come next particularly after the closure of smaller vaccination centres.
"There is much confusion about how the closure of 29 vaccination centres would affect the vaccination of migrant workers, especially in the already strained (sole) walk-in vaccination facility at Bukit Jalil Stadium."
He estimated that only 50 per cent of the 80,000 to 100,000 migrant workers of restaurants under his association and the Malaysian Muslim Restaurant Owners Association (Presma) were vaccinated.
Even then, he said most of them had only received one dose, as vaccinations for foreigners who were not factory workers began only this month.
"Before they get their second dose, a large number of vaccination centres will be closed," he said, adding that a large number of workers also had to miss their appointments at regular vaccination centres over the past few weeks as many restaurants workers had been hit by outbreaks.
Krishnan said the number of vaccinated migrant workers was lower outside the Klang Valley.
He said as the government made it compulsory for patrons and not staff to be fully vaccinated, customers might refuse to let staff verify their check-in on MySejahtera and bully them when asked to register into the log book.
Presma yesterday said it was not compulsory for its members to open their premises for dining even though the government had allowed it for fully vaccinated individuals.
Its president, Datuk Jawahar Ali Taib Khan, said however, Presma members must ensure that only fully vaccinated workers served customers.
"The announcement brings relief to restaurant operators especially those under Phase 1 of the NRP, and we recommend our members to assign one worker to check customers' digital Covid-19 vaccination certificate on their MySejahtera application," he said in a report by Bernama.
He also urged the government to vaccinate all migrant workers, especially those in the food and beverage industry, by the end of August or the first week of September.
He said restaurants were urged to put up a notice on the vaccination status of their workers.
The National Security Council announced on Thursday that fully vaccinated people were allowed to dine at eateries in states under Phase 1 of the NRP starting yesterday. Phase 1 states are Kedah, Negri Sembilan, Johor, Selangor and the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya.
Meanwhile, Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye urged Malaysians to adhere to the standard operating procedures (SOP) at all times.
The Alliance for Safe Community chairman echoed Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah's warning to the public to not be lax with the SOP when economic sectors reopened yesterday.
"Dr Noor Hisham reminded us that many places are opening because of the economy and not because it is safe.
"He had even pointed out that people must not let their guard down and continue to comply with all SOPs, as we cannot afford to close our economy.
"If the top civil servant charged with handling the pandemic is dismayed, it is a real cause for the people to be alarmed and be on the highest alert.
"Now, more than ever, is the time for the people to take all necessary precautions and discipline to buck the Covid-19 trend.
"Otherwise, they are putting themselves in the direct line of fire," he said in a statement, yesterday.
Lee urged the public to cooperate with the Health Ministry to break the Covid-19 infection chain.
