Frenzy for traffic summons discount sparks Covid fears as crowds throng payment centres

Tens of thousands of people in the Klang Valley have responded to a generous offer of discount by the government for their traffic summonses, thronging police stations and payment centres and sparking fears over the possibility of new Covid-19 clusters due to the large crowds.

Checks by MalaysiaNow showed that there was no physical distancing, with crowds spilling into the streets since morning in several locations.

At the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre, people had been waiting for hours to reach the payment counters, hoping to get the 80% discount offered on their summonses.

It is possible to settle the summonses through various online payment platforms.

But many users complained of slow servers due to high traffic, including when using the police’s MyBayar platform.

Social media comments responding to scenes of the crowds warned of a spike in Covid-19.

They pointed to the Delta and Omicron variants, while others urged health authorities including Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin to take action.

The discount was announced to mark 100 days of Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s “Malaysian Family” tagline, and will last for four days until Dec 12.

Motorists in Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya can get up to 80% off their summonses while those in other states can enjoy a discount of 70%.

The discount does not apply to summonses pending court mentions, or those for major offences, heavy vehicle offences and exhaust modifications.