THE Penang government will take stern action against businesses that ignore the movement control order, including revoking licenses and seizing their goods, said state exco Jagdeep Singh Deo.

Jagdeep, who is in charge of housing and local government, said enforcement will begin tomorrow as some of businesses continue to ignore the order.

At present, he said about 80% of businesses in the state complied with the order.

“Some categories of businesses in the state such as food courts, small business complexes and construction sites are still functioning as normal.

“The Penang Island City Council (MBPP) has checked 1,834 premises in the past three days while the Seberang Perai City Council (MBSP) had checked 274 premises.

“Tomorrow onwards, if we still have premises which continue to ignore the order, we will revoke their licences and seize their goods,” he told reporters in George Town today.

In the same press conference, MBPP mayor Yew Tung Seang said four roadside hawker centres will be closed tomorrow onwards.

“The centres at Air Itam, Bayan Baru, Jelutong and Jalan Perak will be closed tomorrow. We are focusing on these four areas as they are the ones who are not adhering to the order.”

In Seberang Perai, five of the 30 public markets will be under scrutiny.

They are in Penanti, Sg Dua, Samagagah, Taman Selamat, and Kg Baru in Bukit Mertajam.

There have been reports of members of public gathering at food courts and market in the state despite the order, with some food outlets allowing people to dine-in despite being prohibited to do so.

The two-week order came into effect on March 18 as part of the government’s attempt to stop the spread of Covid-19.

Malaysia yesterday recorded 130 new cases, bringing the total number of cases of 1,030, with three fatalities.

Most of the positive cases have come from a tabligh gathering which took place in a mosque in Kuala Lumpur at the end of last month. – March 21, 2020.