by Nancy Nais
KUCHING, March 29: After it was announced the Movement Control Order (MCO) was extended to April 14, many people feared that there will be food shortages including supplies from wet markets.
The authorities concerned has repeatedly reassured the public not to fear as wet markets, supermarkets, grocery stores and food stalls will remain open from 7am to 7pm, so there is plenty of food available.
It now appears there there are ample amounts of vegetables, poultry and seafood at markets but there are not enough people buying.
Vendors approached by DayakDaily at Stutong Market said they have seen a big dip in customer numbers since the MCO was enforced nationwide from March 18 in attempt to curb the spread of Covid-19.
“Usually on weekends, we get good heavy traffic here. My business has dropped 70 per cent. There is only a handful of customers now. As you can see, most of the stalls still have a lot of vegetable produce. Same goes for the others. Go over to the seafood section and take a look.
“Now people who know exactly what they need will just walk to my stall, quickly order what they need, pay, grab and go,” a vendor told Dayak Daily when met at his stall.
A seafood stall operator said business has dropped significantly because some of them here supply to grocery shops and restaurants around the area and further out.
“Since the MCO, I’ve personally seen at least a 50 per cent drop in requests for supplies. I guess not many people are ordering seafood takeaways from the restaurants and not all of them do deliveries,” he said.
However, sellers at the market understand why the government had to implement the MCO and be strict about it.
They agreed that it is for the best as millions of lives are at stake.
They are also hopeful that the Covid-19 outbreak will pass over quickly so that everyone can return to their normal lives. — DayakDaily
