Eateries in Kota Kinabalu tentatively open for dine-in while waiting for official SOPs

KOTA KINABALU, July 1 ― Amid the confusion over when dine-in will be allowed in Sabah, some eateries have braved the circumstances and opened their doors and tables to patrons.

While almost all businesses have opted to wait for the standard operating procedures (SOPs) to be released, a handful of eateries in the state capital said they believed that they were in a comfortable grey area in the eyes of the law.

“The cops said they won’t saman people for dining in. And the state government has said it will go ahead (with its previous announcement that dine-in can start on June 29) and is just waiting for the SOPs to be approved, so I think it should be OK,” said one coffee shop owner in Luyang.

The owner said they have followed previous SOP guidelines, such as requiring patrons check in with their MySejahtera app and enforcing a two-person-per-table limit.

“I think we won’t get in trouble if we stick to these SOPs,” said the operator with a shrug.

Another mamak shop in Inanam said that it believes it is on the right side of the law based on the chief minister’s announcement on June 28, as well as a June 29 statement that said the state intends to go ahead with the relaxation of SOPs while waiting for the official gazetting by the federal government.

They smiled as curious passers-by asked if dine-in is already allowed, while saying, “Kami ikut SOP (We are following the SOP)”.

Both the shops interviewed said that they had a steady stream of dine-in customers since opening, the majority of whom were regulars.

Enforcement authorities such as the police and the Health Department have not issued with a statement to indicate whether dine-in operations are restricted although the state National Security Council has adopted a soft approach and advised people to wait for the new SOPs to be issued.

Last Monday, Chief Minister Datuk Hajiji Noor announced that Sabah would begin Phase One of its state recovery plan on June 29 with the easing of several SOPs to include hair salons, dine-ins, some non-contact sports and manufacturing factories dealing with rubber, wood and furniture, among others.

However, no SOPs were released as of midnight or the following day, triggering state-wide confusion as eateries and hairdressers opened their doors only to close again a few hours later as word got around that business was still not allowed, although it was later learned that enforcement officials had not issued any fines.

That same evening, Senior Minister Datuk Ismail Sabri Yaakob said that states should follow the national SOPs and not make up their own rules.

There was further confusion as the state government later issued a statement saying that the SOPs had been submitted to the federal government and were waiting to be gazetted but did not address Ismail Sabri’s statement directly.

Yesterday, Sabah leaders from both sides of the political divide rallied behind Hajiji and pushed for the state to be allowed to decide its own course as there cannot be a “one size fits all” policy for the lockdown.

Sabahans are currently waiting for state Secretary Datuk Safar Untong to release the SOPs that will follow through with Hajiji’s announcement.