KUALA LUMPUR – Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) has denied doing away with its ban on liquor sales at sundry shops, convenience stores and traditional Chinese medicine halls in the city.
In a statement today, DBKL refuted claims that its excise licensing board had lifted the ban after a meeting on November 23.
“The sale of liquor at grocery and convenience stores as well as Chinese medicine outlets is still subject to the guidelines that have been set.
“(On November 23) the board had only approved 1,519 applications for the renewal of various wholesale, public housing and retail licences. No new retail licences were approved,” the local authority added.
Previously, a media outlet quoted the board’s vice chairman Pooi Weng Keong as saying that liquor licence applications made by the sundry shops, convenience stores and traditional Chinese medicine halls were approved.
“Although it was an issue in 2021, the new committee does not see such regulations from the legal perspective,” Pooi had said.
“As a multiracial country, we should not be too rigid in implementing regulations to ban liquor at non-halal venues.”
The board had in 2021 revised rules banning the sale of liquor from such stores while limiting the sale of beer from 7am to 9pm.
The ban, which came into effect on November 1 that year, saw pubs, bars, lounges and restaurants being allowed to sell hard liquor from 10am to midnight. Those with an approved special time extension could continue sales until 2am. – December 4, 2023