BUTTERWORTH – Penang Youth and Sports Committee chairman Soon Lip Chee has claimed that he was merely posing for pictures to promote yau char kwai, after he was summoned by police to give his statement for allegedly dining at a food court.
A social media post showing photos of Soon giving the thumbs up over a tray of the local fare while attempting to dip them into a cup of black coffee has gone viral overnight.
Yau char kwai, which literally translates to “oil-fried devil”, is a long, golden brown deep-fried strip of dough usually eaten for breakfast as an accompaniment for black coffee, soy milk and rice congee.
“I was not doing anything wrong,” Soon said of the photos, which were taken at the Sin Tat Garden food court.
The Bagan Jermal assemblyman said he was merely posing for a photograph showing the yau char kwai and local coffee sold by a hawker at the food court.
Every week, Soon makes it a point to promote Penang’s hawker food online to help those in his constituency gain online sales.
“I was asked by the hawker friend to pose, I didn’t consume the food.
“We returned the items, and I left. No offence was committed as far as I know.
“I wouldn’t do anything wrong here. We must respect the law.”
He was responding to a statement by Seberang Perai Utara police chief Noorzainy Mohd Noor who said Soon and the owner of the food outlet have been summoned to give their statements this evening.
“We have called Soon, the owner of the eatery and several other individuals to have their statements recorded over the matter,” said Noorzainy.
“Investigations are being carried out under the Disease Prevention Measure and Control Act 1988 (Act 342) and Regulation 17 of the Disease Prevention Measure and Control Act 2021.”
He said the incident happened at about 3pm last Sunday, adding that Soon informed police through a personal aide that he was there to promote street food.
He advised the people to not make any speculation regarding the matter until investigations are completed. – The Vibes, May 26, 2021
