RM500 Ramadan bazaar lots sold for RM30,000 previously, says Khalid
He says new policy provides fair opportunities to all traders as well as eliminates monopoly and Ali Baba culture.
KUALA LUMPUR: Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) is staying firm over its decision to fully handle the 2019 Ramadan bazaar operations despite protests from the traders.
Federal Territories Minister Khalid Samad said he believed the new policy would provide fair opportunities to all traders as well as eliminate the monopoly and “Ali Baba” culture in the industry.
“Many of the traders are protesting because the new policy will break the existing networking they had with the previous organisers.
“They usually controlled the lots. We found out that there were many cases of hikes in lot rental rates,” he told reporters after witnessing the signing of the TRX Common Estate Agreement here today.
When asked how much the rental rates for these bazaar lots were increased, Khalid said: “In some cases, they rent it out for about RM30,000 per lot.
“That is not what DBKL is charging. With us, it is normally around RM500.
“It also does not involve just one party. It goes through a few people. A will rent it to B and B will rent it to C.”
Khalid added that the new online licence application had also enabled them to identify and give the opportunity to certain minority groups, such as persons with disabilities (OKU) and single mothers.
Prior to this, the media reported that DBKL had opened its online licence application for this year’s Ramadan bazaar on Feb 15 to fully handle the bazaar without intervention from outside organisers, such as NGOs, associations or individuals.
Stay current - Follow FMT on WhatsApp, Google news and Telegram
The new system sparked dissatisfaction among traders who wanted the traditional operations of the Ramadan bazaar to be retained.