Ong Ye Kung debunks KF Seetoh's claims that Bukit Canberra hawkers charged S$70 for basket to store deliveries

UPDATE on Aug. 12 at 10:22am: This article has been updated with more information from Canopy Hawkers Group.

Local food critic KF Seetoh took to Facebook to bemoan issues that stallholders at Bukit Canberra Hawker Centre purportedly face.

This includes allegedly being charged S$70 a month to use a small basket to leave supplier deliveries in. Seetoh also claimed that the stallholders were "contractually obligated" to provide 60 free meals a month.

On Monday (Aug. 11), Minister for Health Ong Ye Kung debunked Seetoh's claims in a Facebook post.

Ong is a Member of Parliament for Sembawang GRC, where the hawker centre is located.

Bukit Canberra Hawker Centre is run by Canopy Hawkers Group (CHG).

S$70 per month to use small basket for deliveries

Seetoh's first claim was made in an Aug. 4 Facebook post.

In the post, Seetoh alleged that stallholders were being charged S$70 to use a basket to store supplier deliveries.

A video uploaded alongside the post highlighted a blue basket on the ground behind several hawker stalls.

Seetoh accused CHG of charging "willy-nilly as a social enterprise hawker centre management".

'Forced charity'

On Aug. 8, Seetoh made another Facebook post claiming that hawkers at Bukit Canberra Hawker Centre are "contractually obligated" to provide 60 free meals per month — 30 as part of a "Pay-It-Forward" programme and another 30 as part of a "Customer-Relationship Management" programme.

"They are also contractually forced to offer budget S$3 - S$3.50 meals," Seetoh wrote.

The blue basket was only seen at a few stalls, while other stalls stored their supplies in other manners.

No such practice: Ong Ye Kung

Responding to Seetoh's posts, Ong wrote on Aug. 11 that he looked into the matters raised.

Ong stated that the S$70 charge "is not true", and that "there is no such practice of charging for the use of the blue baskets at the back of their stalls".

"Second, it was also claimed that hawkers must provide 60 free meals each month. This does not present the full picture," Ong added.

Ong explained that stallholders had initially agreed to provide 30 meals a month for low-income residents.

"This was subsequently adjusted to 100 meals over the three-year duration of their lease," Ong shared.

There are also no penalties if the stallholders do not or are unable to provide the meals, according to Ong.

"This simple, well-intentioned initiative was meant to encourage our hawkers to ‘Pay-It-Forward’. In any case, the initiative has yet to commence," Ong pointed out.

Ong acknowledged Seetoh's concern, and called for collaboration to "uphold our hawker centre culture."

"I appreciate KF Seetoh’s concern for our hawkers and share his passion for keeping our hawker culture alive and thriving. However, let’s do so without putting down anyone, whether they are patrons, hawkers, the hawker centre operator, or government agencies. When issues arise, there are avenues for discussion and resolution. Everyone will need to work together to uphold our hawker centre culture."

No fees for delivery drops: Canopy Hawker Group

Responding to queries from Mothership, Lionel Chan, Centre Manager at Canopy Hawker Group, echoed Ong's sentiments, and clarified that stallholders are not charged a fee to leave deliveries outside their stalls "if it is purely for a few hours".

"Should stallholders wish to have additional space outside their stalls for storage purposes, they can do so by applying for a Temporary Occupational Licence (TOL) through Canopy Hawker Group, and if successful, will pay a fee," Chan explained.

"This is a common practice across various hawker centres and markets."

The fee for a TOL is S$70, but Chan noted that having the additional space for storage purposes is optional. Applying for a TOL is also optional.

According to Chan, stallholders usually use this additional space to store items such as "cooking utensils that they may not use immediately, dry ingredients and small personal items."

Chan also confirmed that the Pay-It-Forward programme has yet to commence and that the number of meals were reduced from 30 a month to 100 over three years.

"[This] was made known to stallholders before they took up tenancy at Bukit Canberra Hawker Centre," Chan said.

Additionally, he shared that the "Customer-Relationship Management" programme initially comprised setting aside 30 meals a month per stall as part of meal awards for patrons.

It has since been revised to a direct 10 per cent discount when patrons pay through an app to "incentivise and attract" visitors to the hawker centre.

"The interests of our stallholders are of priority to CHG and we remain committed to have open discussions with stallholders on programmes and initiatives for the hawker centre," Chan commented.

Seetoh responds

Following Ong's Facebook post, Seetoh posted his reply later that day, thanking Ong for his response.

Seetoh expressed worry about the free meals being in the stallholders' contracts, and suggested that while it may not be enforced presently, "management can effect it anytime they want to".

Seetoh added that the charge for the blue basket was information that was relayed to him by a stallholder.

"The person has no reason to make this up. I have seen the invoice and receipt of payment for it. It's called a Backyard Cluster (0.48m)," Seetoh wrote.

Seetoh suggested that Ong take a look at the hawker's contract, and "see if any of the points of contract contradict the roles a socially responsible hawker [centre] management team should practice and implement."