KUALA LUMPUR, July 2 — Despite the enhanced movement control order (EMCO) covering parts of the city here and Selangor tomorrow, residents have not engaged in the panic buying of food and essentials.
At Petaling Jaya’s Jalan Othman Wet Market today, shoppers gathered outside as early as 7am as supervisors remained very strict in controlling how many patrons were allowed in at any one time.
Malay Mail observed proper physical distancing within the popular market as authorities controlled the crowd size.
Aemy, a 37-year-old housewife, said she and her friend were buying enough supplies for just five days as they live within 10km of the market and were confident that there would not be any issue procuring more when the EMCO began.
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“One thing I noticed is vegetable prices have gone up. Be it in the supermarkets or here.
“I think people need not worry about food shortages. As you can see here there’s plenty of produce and you gotta be smart about how and what you buy,” she said.
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M. Batumalai, who spoke to Malay Mail after buying curry powder mix for mutton and chicken, also said he has no concerns about being able to get food at the market he has patronised throughout his life.
He said others should also not be concerned, advising them to refrain from panic buying and hoarding.
“Keep so long also cannot (keep), isn’t it? Your food will perish and you’d have to have a huge fridge to keep everything.
“I only market when things are finishing, no need to come over just because the government said EMCO tomorrow,” said the 63-year-old.
He then expressed hope that the latest measure would lead to a reduction in Covid-19 cases in the area.
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For others, like Haji Ibrahim, however, today could be the last time he would be able to shop at the market as he lived beyond the 10km travel limit allowable for EMCO areas.
“It’s cheaper here and since I’ve been buying stuff here for my nasi lemak business in Kota Damansara. It’s convenient and familiar to me.
“Now, from tomorrow onwards, I’ll have to buy items from Damansara since I cannot travel.
“But what I’m more concerned about is what does the future hold?
“Today MCO then tomorrow something else, then day after, another thing. Can’t travel, can’t go anywhere, people can’t have kids so it’s tough for the public and the older crowd,” said the 65-year-old.
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According to spice vendor Kanaga Ambigai, the crowd was larger today.
She also reported that some customers were ordering more than usual, likely as a precaution for when the EMCO takes effect.
For areas affected, only one person per household is permitted to leave their homes at any one time to purchase food and essentials.
Such a restriction would affect the elderly more than others, she noted.
“They cannot carry so much so it is a bit hard for them,” she said.
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Vegetable seller Wai Ha said she and her regulars have devised a system in which they called in their orders and came to pick these up without having to enter the market.
“They call and I prepare what they want and they pick it up from the back. Easy and fast,” she said when advising against hoarding perishable items.
“I want to tell people not to panic. People can also seek help from MCA or Umno if they need help,” said Wai Ha who has been selling vegetables since young.
“There is a lot of food here so maybe during EMCO you need more trips to the market instead of having extra hands to carry for you. Difficult but you have to do so since Covid still out there,” she added.
Yesterday, Senior Defence Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob announced that 15 KL localities and all of Selangor except the Sabak Bernam district would be placed under EMCO for two weeks starting tomorrow.
Source: Malay Mail
