SIBU, August 1:The first day of trading today at Pasar Tamu Taman Indah saw good response from the public
Most of the 114 traders had the initial fear that due to the distance from the town centre, this new site for the Tamu will be neglected by the public.
This popular weekend market has moved from Taman Mahsuri to Taman Indah. The trading hours are from 6am to 11am on Saturday and Sunday.
Traders and visitors have to observe the standard operating procedures (SOP). They include body temperature scanning, either manual or QR code registration and the wearing of face mask.
Chairman of Sibu Municipal Council (SMC), councillor Clarence Ting who inspected the market today was happy that business went on smoothly.
“I went to visit this morning around 8am. During my visit, the traders I talked with commented that their business has not changed from the last time they operated. Although there are a few stalls that need to be adjusted to give them better vantage due to its location,” he said.
Ting said 210 people had applied for trading place but only 114 of them were approved. Of the number, 108 of them are Chinese, Dayak, five, and Malay, one.
“There were a number of potential traders who approached me declaring their desire to get a place to trade. Council set up 114 trading places, I think there were less than 10 that didn’t come to trade this morning,” he said.
He said SMC would have to solve some issues which has arisen. This includes indiscriminate parking by visitors that is causing problems for the neighbourhood.
The other issue is concerning the long waiting list of people who have expressed their interest to trade there.
“Overall, I am glad Sibu public continues to support the Sunday market and the traders seemed to have business. One day does not indicate success of the market. SMC will monitor to make this Sunday market a continuing success,” he assured.
Meanwhile chairman for Market and Petty Traders, councillor Albert Tiang said this new trading site has 342 parking lots as against 93 at the old site at Jalan Mahsuri.
“There are no parking issues here but some are this morning occupied by lorries and coffeeshop operators who put up their chairs and tables over them. Our enforcement officers will issue summon to them if they continue to do so,” he said.
Tiang also concurred that business was good on the first day.
“The traders commended that this new place is cleaner and more spacious than the previous one. They are happy that their business turned out to be good,” he said. -DayakDaily
