THE swift return of foreign traders to Selayang Baru following a Selayang Municipal Council (MPS) enforcement raid has sparked public concern.
MPS posted on its social media site that it had carried out an operation on Jan 8 to check business licences, monitor hawker, and address public complaints in Selayang.
The raid, which included the police, resulted in 49 compound notices issued along with three seizure actions against premises and hawkers.
Despite these efforts, residents reported that it was business as usual by Jan 11.
In the comments section of the post, a netizen claimed that meat and poultry sellers − whose stalls were seized − were back in business.
A video uploaded by another resident allegedly showed a foreign trader operating a poultry stall near the Federal Agricultural Marketing Authority (Fama) permanent farmers’ market.
The footage showed the trader dumping wastewater and blood directly onto the street.
Another comment was from a netizen who claimed he witnessed a lookout warning traders before the local council arrived.
“I heard her saying, ‘Standby, keep your things, they are about to arrive,’” he wrote, questioning how information regarding the operation had leaked.
Community members, including resident Hussin Ahmad, are calling for permanent stationing of officers at hotspots rather than one-off raids.
He said illegal foreign hawkers were creating unfair competition for local traders who comply with licensing rules.
MPS Corporate Communications Department said the local council was aware of the complaints and would provide a formal response at a later date.
