This morning, the bazaars were ordered to be closed by the housing and local government ministry (KPKT) following analysis and contact tracing conducted by the health ministry through the MySejahtera app. The affected bazaars are in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Johor, Kedah, Pahang and Perak.
In a statement today, KPKT said the closures were done after the bazaars in question were identified as potential sources of outbreaks due to the high number of close contacts frequenting them, as detected by the Hotspot Identification by Dynamic Engagement (HIDE) system developed by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) and the health ministry.
The bazaars will be closed for three days for sanitisation work and to ensure that standard operating procedures (SOPs) can be streamlined.
State and local authorities were also advised to tighten enforcement at Ramadan bazaars to avoid further spread of the virus.
“Traders and visitors are also advised to always adhere to the SOPs that have been set to prevent an increase in Covid-19 cases,” the ministry said.
The bazaars that have been temporarily closed are under the jurisdiction of Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) and the Subang Jaya, Ampang Jaya, Penang Island, Seberang Perai, Johor Bahru, Pasir Gudang, Kota Tinggi, Kulim, Baling, Temerloh, Teluk Intan councils.
The public had previously expressed concern over crowds gathering at these bazaars as it was difficult to practise physical distancing despite enforcement of SOPs.
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