KUCHING: There seemed to be no rush by punters in placing their bets at lottery outlets when were allowed to resume operation on Friday (June 19).
The initial response looked very much lukewarm.
A survey by New Sarawak Tribune conducted in Jalan Song Thian Cheok here found that more than 100 customers entered two outlets－Sports Toto and Magnum 4D－to try their luck.
However, the outlets were not swarmed by punters nor was there any long queue because of the punters’ usual come-and-go habit.
As at 10.30am, Sports Toto recorded about 94 customers while Magnum 4D recorded approximately 40 to 50.
According to employees of both outlets, the standard operating procedures (SOPs) as outlined by the government were fully adhered to.
The outlets recorded personal details, scanned the body temperature of punters, prepared hand sanitisers and placed markings on the floor to ensure social distancing.
Perhaps this mandated adherence to SOPs resulted in the lukewarm response to the reopening of the betting counters.
Five employees worked at each outlet and only 10 customers were allowed inside the premises at any one time.
On June 17, the Sarawak Disaster Management Committee announced that lottery outlets would be allowed to reopen on Friday (June 19) after they were forced to close for more than three months due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
