The entertainment premises raided by the police, Health Ministry and the City Hall recently.
KOTA KINABALU: An entertainment outlet operator was slapped with a RM25,000 fine for operating during the Movement Control Order (MCO).
Four workers and 28 people who patronized the outlet at the Waterfront Anjung Samudera Jalan Tun Fuad Stephen near here when the Ops Bersepadu was carried out recently were each fined RM5,000.
Kota Kinabalu district police chief Assistant Commissioner Mohd Zaidi Abdullah said that the operation began at 9pm and was jointly carried out by a team of police from the crime investigation division of the district police headquarters, together with the Health Ministry and the City Hall.
“During the raid, the music was blaring with the patrons enjoying themselves while consuming alcohol and they did not have the opportunity to escape from the premises,” he said.
“A check found that the premises is operated by a 41-year-old manager, four workers and there were 12 males and 16 females inside,” he said.
He added that the activity flouted the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) that disallows the operation of entertainment outlet during the MCO.
Moreover, the patrons at the venue did not adhere to the social distancing requirement, he said.
“The owner of the premises and the clients were found to have flouted the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Regulation 2020 and were compounded at the scene by the police and by Health Ministry.
“Check on the operating license showed that the premises has gone against the condition of the business by running an entertainment outlet using a Class Two restaurant license and was further penalized by the City Hall.”
The City Hall also issued a compound under the Pub and Bar Lounge Premises By-Laws 1984 at maximum level because the premises carried out pub and bar operations without a license.
Since the MCO 1.0, several entertainment outlets have been raided by the police and local governments for breaking the SOP and operating beyond the allowed time.
On Sunday, 53 people, including three Chinese foreigners, were also fined for violating SOP at an entertainment outlet in Waterfront here.
The premises owner was slapped with a RM25,000 fine.
About 50 people drinking inside the premises without practicing any social distancing and not wearing any face mask, were fined RM5,000 each.
The police found that the premises was also registered with a Class Two restaurant license and not as an entertainment outlet, which clearly violates the license.