Tesco Malaysia apologises for age limit signage 'error' posted at an outlet

Tesco Malaysia has apologised for signs that were put up at the entrance of one of its outlets prohibiting children below the age of 16 and senior citizens above 65 from entering its premises.

The hypermarket chain apologised in a Facebook post on Monday evening (May 18), after photos of the signage went viral on social media.

"We wish to apologise for the age limit signs that were put up in error at one of our stores. We want everyone to feel welcomed in our stores and are very sorry if this mistake has offended our customers," the post read. 

"As recommended by the Ministry of Health, we would like to encourage those most vulnerable among us, especially young children and senior citizens, to stay safe and stay home as much as possible during this ongoing pandemic," the company explained.

[embed]https://www.facebook.com/TescoMY/posts/3159127347458484[/embed]

In its latest guidelines, Tesco stated that senior citizens are welcome to its stores but discouraged parents from bringing children under 12 years of age to shop with them, so as to curb the spread of Covid-19 and reduce viral exposure to those who are most vulnerable.

The sign that went viral online riled up netizens who accused the chain of age discrimination. Some claimed that senior citizens were made to queue in long lines at Tesco outlets.

Others voiced concern that Tesco is not being sensitive to elderly folks who live by themselves and have no one else to shop for them. On the other hand, a few others pointed out that Tesco may be doing this out of concern for senior citizens, who are more vulnerable to infections. 

The Malaysian government has also discouraged parents from bringing their young children with them to crowded public places where social distancing might be difficult to practise.

Currently, the Health Ministry is mulling on the decision to draft new standard operating procedures to reduce the risk of children being exposed to Covid-19.

For the latest updates on the coronavirus, visit here.

melinamoey@asiaone.com