Penang Island City Council (MBPP) councillor Ong Ah Teong said Ahmad had admitted he was at fault when he did not submit an application to the council for the extensions.
Citing a report in The Star, he said Ahmad admitted his mistake and confirmed receiving notices from the council but did not look into the matter as he was mostly away in Kuala Lumpur.
“I hope the café owner will learn from Datuk Ahmad Ismail and be a gentleman to admit his own mistakes, and act according to MBPP’s advice.
“Whining does no good for your problems.
“Just be a man and admit your own mistake,” said Ong, who is alternate chairman of the council’s public health standing committee.
Ahmad was previously known for his controversial “pendatang” (immigrant) remark in 2008 that hurt ties between Umno and other Barisan Nasional component parties, namely Gerakan in Penang.
Kaffa cafe owner Patrick Ooi was upset that the MBPP had sent enforcement officers to his premises “three times in four days” last week.
First, his cafe’s illegally-built toilet at the Penang International Airport was torn down last Wednesday.
Then, he was fined last Friday for operating his cafe in Lebuh China without a licence. He was also booked after council officers found rat droppings at the back of the cafe.
Ooi, who is a Chinese educationist, and Penang Gerakan and MCA leaders had linked the council’s action with Ooi’s criticism of Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng’s leadership and outburst against the Chinese press.
Ooi told FMT today that the timing of the events could not all be a coincidence since they happened so soon after he criticised the chief minister.
Ong said the council was following its standard operating procedures when its officers visited Ooi’s outlets. He said this had nothing to do with the cafe owner criticising Lim.
He said it was a routine spot check on food outlets in Lebuh China by the council, a practice that started in 2010.
“When the officers were at Kaffa Signature Sdn Bhd, they found that the shop had been operating without a valid licence. The council had earlier rejected the owner’s application. A notice with a RM250 compound fine was issued.
“The officers went to check the kitchen, which was in a good condition and it was rated 88%, which is Grade A.
“But they found some rat droppings at the back of the premises. A notice with a RM100 compound fine was served under Section 16(1) of the council’s Food Establishment by-law 1991.”
Rat droppings, Ong said, could spread diseases like hantavirus and salmonellosis. Public health and food safety are among the council’s priorities.
He also said although the cafe used pest control, the results were “unsatisfactory”, so the council suggested the operator improve his pest-controlling measures.
Ong said if Ooi felt MBPP had misused its powers, he could take legal action.
“I don’t think any of the council’s officers have anything against Ooi,” he said.
Other outlets checked during the routine inspection last Friday were the Peace and Joy coffeeshop and Hing Kee restaurant that were fined for not having anti-typhoid vaccination; Street Art Cafe that was fined for not having a licence and putting food ingredients too close to the floor; and Hock Leong Yen café, that was found to have followed all council regulations.
Ong said over the first 11 months of this year, more than 1,000 food outlets had been checked and fined for various offences under the Food Establishment bylaw and for operating without a valid licence, with the council collecting RM327,500 in fines.
“I would like to know why the owner of the (Kaffa) cafe is so sensitive. If he has done nothing wrong, why is he afraid of MBPP’s spot checks?
“I just want to tell him to do his part as a cafe operator to ensure the cleanliness of his cafe and also to comply with all the rules and regulations set by the council,” he said.