By Lian Cheng
KUCHING, March 4: Facing public complaints about expensive hawker food and drinks, Kuching South City Hall (MBKS) calls on hawkers under its jurisdiction to fairly price their dishes and drinks since their rentals are subsidised.
During today’s 153rd ShallWeeTalk live stream session, MBKS mayor Dato Wee Hong Seng received complaints that food and drinks at some hawker stalls are either charging the same or more than those offered by coffeeshops.
As the rentals of hawker stalls are subsidised, Wee agreed that this should not be the case.
However, in view that prices of food and drinks are not price- controlled items, MBKS could not force hawkers to offer cheaper prices.
“But your price must be reasonable. A shop’s rental may be RM3,000, and a hawker stall only pays RM110 for rental. Then the food and drinks you offer must be cheaper,” said Wee.
Even before today, he said he had received several complaints about expensive food and drinks at some hawker centres. To him, it does not make sense when stalls at hawker centres charge the prices of a restaurant.
He promised to monitor the prices of food and drinks sold at hawker centres under MBKS. The first step the council will be taking is to write to the stall holders to display the prices of their food and drinks.
“If they (the hawkers) want to make ‘exorbitant profit’, to be fair, then we will consider stalls which are better located to be tendered.
“We can’t be subsiding them all the way. Subsidisation is meant to help the needy and those with low income, not to allow those who are rich to make more money,” said Wee. — DayakDaily
