YAYASAN Wilayah Persekutuan (YWP) has issued a show-cause letter to an operator of electronic billboards for carrying advertisements of controversial dating app Sugarbook.

YWP said it has also taken immediate action to instruct the operator, ad agency Out of Home, to remove the advertisements, upon receiving complaints last night about them. 

“Our checks at about 9.45pm yesterday found that the ads have been taken down, as we had instructed.

“We have also called in the company, which manages the electronic billboards, to issue them a warning letter as well as a show-cause letter today,” said the foundation in a statement. 

The foundation had hired Out of Home to manage the electronic billboards in the capital.

Earlier today Kuala Lumpur City Hall said it had instructed YWP and Out of Home to stop the Sugarbook advertisements. 

The ads were displayed in Bangsar dan Bukit Kiara, two popular upmarket enclaves in the city. It is understood that the advertisements began airing on December 3. 

The ads had caused a stir on social media, with online users questioning the appropriateness of such services in Malaysia. 

Sugarbook is a Malaysian-based company that aims to pair affluent men and women who are termed as “sugar daddies or mommies” with “sugar babies”. 

According to the website, “sugar daddies” are termed as well established wealthy individuals who wish to pamper “sugar babies” with financial support in return for love and companionship. 

The company was started in December 2016 and has since expanded to Singapore and the Philippines. 

Earlier today Lembah Pantai MP Fahmi Fadzil told The Malaysian Insight the website and its advertisement were unsuitable in Malaysia and went against most norms. 

“I don’t think the website sits well with our Eastern values,” said Fahmi. 

He added that although Sugarbook is a legitimate business, it needs to understand the context, culture and religious sensitivities in the country. – December 18, 2019.