Social events get green light
Minister: Gatherings with 250 guests or fewer allowed from July 1
PUTRAJAYA: Those planning to host wedding receptions, engagement parties, birthday and anniversary celebrations and reunions should not continue with their plans if they find it hard to control the guests and situation, says Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.
He said while the social events including religious-related ones such as tahlil (special prayers) and kenduri doa selamat (thanksgiving prayers) would be allowed from July 1, the hosts must enforce the standard operating procedure (SOP).
“The hosts are advised against organising gatherings that are difficult to control.
This is especially if there will be many people at any one time where crowd control and social distancing will be a challenge.
“The police are going around to ensure the SOP is complied with,” the Senior Minister told reporters yesterday.
Ismail Sabri said the SOP for such events included capping the number of guests at 250 or fewer, depending on the venue, and setting up a registration counter for guests to leave their contact details and have their temperature taken.
“The hosts must ensure there are separate entrance and exit points to avoid too many people at the doors.
“We have also set a limit on how long these events can be held, which is between three and five hours,” he said.
Ismail Sabri added that food could be served buffet-style if there were servers to manage the foods, instead of the guests handling it themselves.
“It is best if everyone has a face mask on and those with symptoms such as cough and flu are advised not to attend,” he said.
He also announced that (sacrificial rites) could be held during the Hari Raya Haji celebration, with strict adherence to the SOP, including that it could only be carried out in the compound of mosques, surau or areas permitted by the respective state religious authorities.
Ismail Sabri said those taking part in the korban must follow the SOP outlined by the Malaysian Islamic Development Department, including not allowing children under 12 years old to be present at the premises where the sacrifices are being carried out.
“There must be a registration counter at the entrance of the premises to record attendees’ contacts and temperature.
“The maximum capacity of 250 people must also be observed and organisers must provide hand sanitisers,” he said.
He said for each cattle sacrificed, no more than 30 people were allowed to be involved in the slaughtering of the animal to the skinning, cutting the meat, packaging and distributing it.
He said the permission and SOP were meant for the Federal Territories while for other states, it would be determined by the respective state religious authorities.