Syed Saddiq only applied for house-to-house distribution of aid - Ayob Khan

JOHOR BAHRU: Muar Member of Parliament Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman only sent in an application to distribute essential items house-to-house and not from the Muar parliamentary service centre, said Johor Police Chief Datuk Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay.

He also explained that the order to stop the aid handover programme at the centre was made by the Muar District Health Office after health officers saw for themselves that the programme, which was attended by more than 100 people, failed to comply with COVID-19 prevention standard operating procedures (SOP).

"(For) Members of Parliament or State Assemblymen to carry out relief activities it is certainly allowed but need to get permission from the District Disaster Operations Control Centre (PKOB).

"I understand an application was made but it was for distributing food baskets from house to house, but what happened was that the distribution of the items was made at the Muar parliamentary service centre where many people gathered .... first, they did not have permission to hold such a programme and secondly, there was no physical distancing," he told reporters at the Johor Police Contingent Headquarters (IPK), here today.

As a result, Ayob Khan said the Muar District Health Office enforcement arm ordered the programme to be stopped.

"So, I request (that) any elected representative who wants to do such a programme, please follow the SOP set by the National Security Council (MKN), ask for the permission from the PKOB, then only controls can be done and so on.

"Following that (Syed Saddiq's case), the authorities only issued a warning to the parties involved and no compound (fine) was issued," he said.

Yesterday, Syed Saddiq on his Facebook page uploaded a status about the service centre being ordered to close from today.

In a separate development, Ayob Khan confirmed the arrest of a Rohingya man known as 'Long Tiger' on Monday (July 12).

He said that the 34-year-old suspect was arrested at about 9.45 pm in Muar because he was believed to have wrongfully confined a 21-year-old former employee.

The man is on four-day remand until Friday.

"Long Tiger was arrested on July 12 at 9.45 pm for wrongful confinement of a person. The investigation is being carried out in accordance with Section 506 of the Penal Code (Criminal Intimidation) and Section 342 of the Penal Code (Wrongfully confining any person)," he said when asked if there was a recent arrest of a man known as Long Tiger.

-- BERNAMA