The Sibu Central Market.
SIBU: The Sibu Municipal Council has banned re-used plastic and glass bottles at its hawker centers and night markets with immediate effect, said a councillor Albert Tiang.
The council’s market and petty traders standing committee chairman did not discount the possibility of extending the ban to Pasar Tamu in time to come.
“During the market and petty traders standing committee meeting this morning, we have come up with a new policy to ban the reuse of plastic and glass drinking bottles at all council’s hawker centres and night markets.
“The decision was made after taking into account the cleanliness and hygiene factors. Whether they (traders) had washed the used plastic and glass drinking bottles properly, or sterilised them is a question.
“Furthermore, we don’t know who was the last person to have used that bottle more so, in view of the current Covid-19 pandemic,” Tiang said when contacted today.
At night markets, used plastic mineral water bottles were often spotted being used to sell home-made drinks such as soya bean and sugar cane, among others.
As for coffee shops, Tiang explained that this was under the jurisdiction of the council’s public health and municipal services standing committee, and believed it would be done at a later stage.
SMC had implemented the ban against single-use straws at all eateries under its areas of jurisdiction, starting this year, and the ban against the use of styrofoam food containers back in 2014.
That aside, Tiang repeated his advice for members of the public to practise social distancing at the council’s markets in particular, Taman Selera Muhibbah, Khoo Peng Loong and Sungai Antu.
In this regard, he pointed out each table – depending on its size – be confined to two or four persons.
He cautioned that if members of the public disregard the social distancing practice, it will affect the hawkers’ business, as they faced the risks of getting their stalls closed in the interest of safety.
He said there was a need for a two-way traffic with members of the public giving cooperation besides traders.
Towards this end, Tiang informed that hawkers including those selling merchandise at the ground floor in Sibu Central Market can trade as usual.
Tiang, however, said food and drink stalls at the first floor of the central market will continue to operate on alternate days because of insufficient tables due to social distancing.