THE Petaling Jaya wet market and food court will resume business on Saturday, nearly two months after being closed due to the discovery of Covid-19 cases.

Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) councillor Ermee Marianna Saadon said the market traders in Jalan Othman will be allowed to reopen in stages.

Traders at the Medan Selera food court will be allowed to open for business with a set standard operating procedures (SOPs) in place, she added.

“Some 300 traders will benefit from this reopening while the rest of the operators will need to meet certain criteria before they are allowed to resume business,” she said in a press conference today after attending a briefing session with the traders at Dewan Sivik in Petaling Jaya.

The market has been closed since April 27 after the discovery of 26 Covid-19 infections.

Later, the area was put under an enhanced movement control order on May 10 and it was lifted at midnight on May 21 but traders were not allowed to resume business.

She said fish and vegetable trader are among those allowed to open.

As for chicken traders, their return date is scheduled for July 1 because the sale area needs upkeep and repair works.                                                                                            

However, she said for chicken traders who want to reopen, they must inform the city council to make necessary arrangements.

“Chicken traders only start from July 1 because their area needs flooring and tiling repairs, and some renovation work.

“But if they still want to do business, the council will find a suitable location for them. They also need to follow the established SOP.”

Ernee said 46 traders did not attend Covid-19 screenings conducted at the wet market.

She added licences will be revoked for those who did not submit the test or dialogue session with MBPJ.

The errant traders, she said, will need to provide documentations to prove they tested negative for Covid-19 before they are allowed to return to the market.

“Only three from the 46 produced documentation on the Covid-19 test.

“There are 43 people who have not taken any action. We acknowledge the seriousness of the Covid-19 issue and we will not compromise on this.” – June 4, 2020.