Earlier this month, the government launched S$300 worth of Community Development Council (CDC) vouchers to assist households.
These vouchers are available for use at five supermarket chains and 20,300 heartland merchants and hawkers.
But a chicken rice stall at People’s Park Food Centre allegedly rejected a customer’s CDC vouchers and later claimed that their scanning machine had broken down.
Worse, the staff allegedly even mocked the customer.
Shin Min Daily News reports that Mr Lai had queued up at Dong Dong Hainanese Chicken Rice in People’s Park Food Centre at around 7pm on 11 Jan.
Noticing that the stall had a sticker stating they accepted CDC vouchers, he attempted to use them to pay for his meal which cost S$5.50.
But the staff refused the voucher. Mr Lai refuted this, saying if the stall didn’t accept CDC vouchers for payment, they should not have displayed the sticker.
Only then did the staff say the scanning machine had actually broken down.
At some point during the argument, Mr Lai recalled that the staff allegedly mocked him, saying, “Don’t eat if you don’t have money.”
This angered Mr Lai, who pointed out that many elderly people lived in the area.
As there was a queue behind him, Mr Lai eventually ended up paying for his meal with cash.
Speaking to Shin Min Daily News on 15 Jan, a cashier at the stall, Guo, explained that the tablet used to scan the vouchers’ QR code had been out of order for a week and was currently under repair.
As such, only his personal mobile phone could be used to scan the code.
However, at the time of the incident, Guo was not at the stall.
“I can’t possibly leave my own mobile phone at the stall while I’m away,” he argued. At the time of the incident, nobody was able to scan the QR code.
Referring to the complaint about staff having a poor attitude, Guo said he will give the feedback to his boss.
“Maybe my colleagues were too busy at the time. We always welcome customers to pay with [CDC vouchers],” he said.
Employees at other stalls in the same hawker centre said they were happy to accept CDC vouchers.
62-year-old Wang who sold fishball noodles said he had more customers pay with CDC vouchers recently, elderly folk making up a large number of such users.
“Vouchers count as money too, sowe welcome customers to pay with vouchers,” he added.
Another stall owner, 39-year-old Huang, said his customers would sometimes order more dishes when using the vouchers to pay for the meal.
“Whether it’s cash or vouchers, we’re making money,” he said, “It doesn’t make much of a difference.”
Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at news@mustsharenews.com.
Featured image adapted from Shin Min Daily News.
Authorities had to use equipment to pry the vehicle open to free the man.
The authorities have investigated and closed the incident with no follow-ups required, MFA said.
He crossed the border daily in hopes of buying a house for his family.
On a few days, the thundery showers might extend into the night.
His church has urged parishioners to refrain from visiting him as he heals.
The kitten will be put up for adoption after its injuries are cured.