KUALA LUMPUR, April 27 — Senior Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob acknowledged today that enforcement officials can sometimes be careless when issuing compounds for Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SOP) violations.
Referring to the recent incident in which a burger stall operator was fined RM50,000 for setting up his stall in front of his house, he said officials have the discretion to decide on the compound amount.
“But sometimes they do not use this discretion, and issue out compounds or fines which make no sense,” Ismail said after attending a dialogue session with Armed Forces veterans’ associations at Wisma Perwira ATM.
Although he personally disagrees with the amount of the compound issued to the burger seller, Ismail said nonetheless the rules and regulations must be obeyed.
“The officials in this instance are at fault, but we cannot say that all officials are guilty.
“This problem is rectifiable, and one can appeal to the Health Ministry for a reduction in the compound amount. This is possible,” Ismail said.
Earlier today Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba said Kota Baru resident Wan Mohd Faisal Wan Kadir could appeal against the set amount, which he said would be reviewed and possibly reduced to a more reasonable amount.
The 38-year old burger seller’s RM50,000 compound for operating his burger stall beyond the permissible opening hours in Kelantan drew flack online, with many condemning the excessive amount.
