The Selangor State Government is currently deliberating whether to ban foreign workers from working as main cooks at hawker stalls in the state as an early measure to prevent these foreigners from operating hawker stalls without permission.
This is according to Selangor Local Government and Tourism Committee chairman Datuk Ng Suee Lim, though he admitted that enforcing such a rule may be difficult due to the state’s large population.
Selangor is reviewing whether to ban foreigners from becoming cooks at hawker stalls in the state
Ng revealed the matter in the Selangor Legislative Assembly (DUN) following a supplementary question by Rawang assemblyperson Chua Wei Kiat who asked whether Selangor would follow in Penang’s footsteps on the matter.
For reference, the Penang State Government has put in place a rule barring foreigners from working as main cooks at hawker stalls, reserving the position for locals.
In reply, Ng said that the measure taken by Penang is an excellent one and accordingly, the Selangor State Government will be consulting with Penang on how they implemented the rule.
He added that should the policy be found to be suitable for the situation in Selangor, then the state would introduce a similar rule.
The policy may be hard to enforce in Selangor due to the state’s large population
However, Ng stressed that such a policy may be hard to enforce in Selangor due to the state’s large area and population, which exceeds 7 million people.
Selangor Local Government and Tourism Committee chairman added,
“There will be protests from stall operators when we implement such a policy. Therefore, we will review this proposal and consult with the Penang government on the implementation.”
So, what do you guys think of Ng’s statement? Share your thoughts with us in the comments.