PETALING JAYA: Restaurants and small coffeeshops hope the government can provide them with six months’ rental subsidies or interest-free loans to keep them afloat.
Malaysian Muslim Restaurant Owners Association (Presma) and Malaysia Singapore Coffeeshop Proprietors’ General Association (MSCPGA) said since their members have contributed to the government’s coffers in various forms of taxes, they hoped the government could reciprocate.
Presma president Datuk Jawahar Ali Taib Khan said “mamak restaurant” owners were now in dire straits as some rents have reached up to RM35,000 a month in the cities.
He said unless the government steps in immediately to provide rental subsidies, he foresees many more resorting to ah long (illegal loan sharks) to stay afloat.
PETALING JAYA: The National Security Council (NSC) should consider reviewing the two-person-per-table ruling at eateries with large tables, says Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye. Tables at some restaurants vary in sizes and what can be done is adjusting the current ruling for larger tables. It is not practical for a large table to accommodate only two persons who are seated 2m apart, he said when contacted on Sunday (Feb 14).
Lee, who is the Alliance for Safe Community chairman, also described that the two-per-table ruling led to absurd situations involving families intending to dine out. For example, if there is a family of four, it would be absurd for their children to sit at separate tables if they are from the same household.