PETALING JAYA, Apr 26 (Sin Chew Daily) – Due to the extended business hours, Ramadan bazaars in the city have been jam packed with shoppers, making it hard to comply with government SOPs implemented to check the spread of the coronavirus.

Dang Wangi OCPD Asst Comm Mohamad Zainal Abdullah told Sin Chew Daily the police will meet the organizers and urge them to tighten their control, especially at entrances, to make sure social distancing is strictly adhered to.

He said the Dang Wang police had sent policemen to patrol places around the Ramadan bazaar and he admitted that shoppers would only comply with the SOPs when they saw policemen around.

"We will step up monitoring to make sure all the shoppers comply with the SOPs. If they fail to comply, we will take action."

Sin Chew Daily visited the Ramadan bazaar along Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman in downtown Kuala Lumpur on Saturday night, and was indeed shocked by the massive crowd there.

While the organizers did control the number of people entering the bazaar and take body temperature of the visitors, the crowd hanging around outside the bazaar was simply too huge to control, with many still queuing up to enter even at midnight, causing severe traffic jam along the main road.

The crowd at Ramadan bazaar was particularly large on Saturday night not only because of the extended business hours until 2am, but also because of the weekly night market there.

While most shoppers put on their face masks, some did not put on their masks properly. Parents were also seen taking their children along to the bazaar, raising the concern of many.

The bazaar is divided into several sections, each with its own entrance. Visitors are required to scan the QR code with their MySejahtera app and line up to enter.