Vendor of controversial garment issues public apology

KLANG: The vendor of the socks that caused controversy recently has issued a public apology, saying that it regrets any oversight in terms of quality control by the company.

“We sincerely apologise for any offence or distress caused by this regrettable incident.

“It has never been our intention to produce or distribute products that could incite division or hurt sentiments within our community” said the company, Xin Jian Chang Sdn Bhd in a statement yesterday.

The company said they immediately took action to rectify the situation upon discovering the issue and diligently removed all such socks from circulation.

The company’s internal investigations determined that the problematic socks were part of a larger shipment of 18,800 pairs from Mu Mian Qing Hosiery Co Ltd, a company based in Zhejiang province, China.

“Contrary to earlier reports, it has been confirmed that there were only five pairs of socks bearing the sensitive word, not 14.

“We regret any oversight in our quality control process that allowed these items to enter our inventory, despite our best efforts to ensure that all 18,800 socks received from our Chinese supplier were in accordance with the provided samples,” it said.

Xin Jian Chang, which is based in Batu Pahat, said it was also looking at initiating legal action against the Chinese manufacturer.

“We have already contacted our China-based supplier to seek an explanation and they have admitted that the problematic socks were included in the bulk of stocks we purchased.

“We are currently seeking legal advice to explore possible legal action against the supplier for their negligence in fulfilling our order,” added the statement.

The company apologised for the distress caused and said it would enhance monitoring of goods received from suppliers.

It added that it had never ordered such socks and its orders to the Chinese manufacturer were based on samples provided.

“We have consistently advised our Chinese suppliers not to provide us with products bearing words, symbols or illustrations that could offend our Muslim community,” said the statement.

It also voiced concern over social media posts that revealed personal information about the key company personnel, who have received threats of violence.

“There have also been threats of setting the company’s factory on fire,” added the company.