KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysian Fitness Coalition (MFC) praises the recent announcement issued by the Youth and Sports deputy minister, Senator Datuk Sri Ti Lian Ker, to allow gym operators in states under Phase Two and Three of the National Recovery Plan to resume operations.
However, the good news does come with some concerns about whether this might be only temporary.
“Although we are pleasantly surprised with the outcome, we can’t help but feel concerned if this is going to be like the last time − where we were allowed to open but was asked to close again within a short period − as it is very costly for us,” said Malaysian Fitness Coalition representative, Yen Kee Toh.
“We need a sustainable plan (to prevent this) because if we don’t, it would be the beginning of another set of problems for gym operators to sustain the business because all our resources are depleting, as we speak.
“We just want to address the root cause of the problem as best we can,” added Yen.
Speaking with The Vibes, she explains that they wish to understand the issues, which caused the delay in resuming gym operations, so that they can take extra precautions to prepare for the future.
“The next challenge for us is how we are going to spend on marketing or advertising to get customers and ensure that safety protocols are adhered to in the gym, such as sanitising the equipment and providing clean water,” Yen said.
At the same time, The Vibes spoke to member of the Youth and Sports ministry’s panel of experts committee, Datuk V. Radhakrishnan, who said that gyms are only allowed 50 per cent occupancy.
“No matter the size of the premise, we are only allowed 50 per cent occupancy at any time and customers as well as gym employees need to be fully vaccinated.
“Also, we can only accept scheduled appointments as walk-in customers are strictly not permitted,” he said, clarifying that the measure was put in place to control the number of people in the respective gyms.
Shower and locker facilites will not be made available to curb the spread of coronavirus.
Datuk V. Radhakrishnan, who is also the National Sports and Fitness Venue Owners and Operators Association president, added that they are “thankful to the relevant ministries for working hard on a decision to allow us to resume operations”.
Although the statement issued by the deputy minister did mention that ‘additional SOPs will be announced’, it did not provide a definitive date. – The Vibes, September 16, 2021
