Worms in noodles video: Enhance Ramadan bazaar food safety enforcement, says KJ

KUALA LUMPUR: Stay alert about the hygiene of food bought at Ramadan bazaars, says Khairy Jamaluddin.

The Health Minister on Friday (April 15) added that he had ordered local authorities and his ministry’s food safety section to enhance its enforcement at Ramadan bazaars nationwide.

"I have requested the food safety section to increase the enforcement of food safety, especially at Ramadan bazaars as we have already received complaints," he said.

On Thursday (April 15), a video was uploaded on social media showing worms inside the noodles bought from a stall at the Putrajaya Ramadan bazaar. The video has since gone viral.

Putrajaya Corporation (PPj) environmental health section director Dr Mohd Helmi Abdul Hamid in a statement on Thursday said that surveillance and inspection had been conducted at the stall mentioned in the video.

He added that the PPj had issued a warning notice to the stall operator who had failed to ensure cleanliness at the stall.

"PPj will continue to work with Putrajaya health department to enforce safety and hygiene surveillance and inspection at all stalls in Putrajaya Ramadan bazaar," Dr Helmi added.

In a separate statement, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya health department director Dr Nor’aishah Abu Bakar said a total of 160 stalls and 320 operators had been inspected at Taman Tasik Permaisuri Ramadan bazaar on Thursday.

"A total of 68 officers were involved in the operation which includes 56 officers from the health department and 12 officers from the Kuala Lumpur City Council (DBKL)," she said.

Khairy also advised the public to promptly submit their complaints should they face any food hygiene issues.

"Customers should make an immediate complaint to the relevant authorities so investigations and actions can be taken," he told the media after launching Malaysia’s first 5G Smart Ambulance at YTL Communications Data Centre in Sentul, Kuala Lumpur.

The minister said that his ministry was looking forward to seeing broader adoption of the technology across sectors of public health.

The smart ambulance service was a result of a strategic partnership between a private ambulance provider, First Ambulance Services (FAS), and telecommunication giant YTL Communications (YTLC).

"I am pleased to see FAS and YTLC working together to uplift the ambulance service standards in Malaysia using 5G.

"Harnessing the power of 5G to use the time spent en route to the hospital to enable effective triage using real-time feeds of patient telemetry and medical imaging.

"In addition, 5G-based Extended Reality will transform the ways we care for the patients and save lives.

"I look forward to seeing broader adoption of 5G technology across all sectors in public health, including our hospitals," he added.