DBKL slams irresponsible allegations of dirty eateries on social media

PETALING JAYA (June 22): Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur (DBKL) has slammed people irresponsibly sharing allegations of dirty eateries on social media as it is forced to waste time and resources investigating fake news.

Citing a video of rats seen nibbling on noodles that went viral, DBKL said they deployed resources investigating claims that it was filmed at two restaurants – one in Brickfields and another one in Taman Tun Dr Ismail – before discovering they were false, reported The Star.

“We responded to the case immediately and found out that the video was not taken in Kuala Lumpur. It is our duty to verify the information and if the restaurants are found to be unhygienic, we will take action,” said DBKL Health and Environment Department director Datin Dr Noor Akma Shabudin.

“The video wasted our time and resources but we had to verify the information. It was a weekend and we had to reimburse our officers for working overtime,” she added.

She noted that social media users shared the video without verifying the location, and urged them to be more responsible.

Complaints over unclean eateries can be lodged with DBKL, she said.

“Once a complaint is lodged, we are given three days to respond to it and two weeks to solve the complaint.”

According to her, there are 6,841 eateries in Kuala Lumpur alone, with a team of five to eight officers per constituency raiding dirty eateries and making weekly routine checks.