CDC voucher not accepted here? Some hawkers share why they're rejecting such payments
PHOTO: Shin Min Daily News
PUBLISHED ONJanuary 18, 2022 10:45 AMByChing Shi JieWhen some people recently tried to pay for their food using their $100 Community Development Council (CDC) vouchers, they were rejected by hawkers.
The reason? Digital vouchers.
To use the voucher, the customer has to show a QR code to a participating merchant who will then scan it using a mobile app.
Although his stall is a participating merchant under the CDC voucher scheme, a man running a Japanese-Korean food stall in Woodlands told Shin Min Daily News that he has turned away customers who wanted to use the digital vouchers as payment.
"There are usually two aunties manning the stall. They are not familiar with how a mobile phone works and no one has taught them how to accept these kinds of digital vouchers," the 31-year-old hawker said.
He added that he will only accept the CDC vouchers if they come in hard copies. The hawker is also not against the authorities sending someone over to teach him and his staff how to use the mobile application.
A Malay food seller in Woodlands also refused to accept the digital vouchers.
The woman, who is in her sixties, told the Chinese daily that she planned to close her business next month, and did not want to "cause too much trouble" for herself.
In response to Shin Min's queries, the People's Association (PA) said that more than 90 per cent of hawkers and merchants on the scheme have logged at least one voucher transaction.
The spokesperson said that PA will send ambassadors to assist these hawkers, and also encouraged hawkers and merchants who have not signed up for the scheme to try using the platform.
"When hawkers are facing difficulties with the platform, we will give them a step-by-step demonstration. After doing this, many hawkers realised that it's not as complicated as what they thought," he explained.
The CDC voucher scheme was rolled out on Dec 13 last year to help businesses and Singapore households cope with the Covid-19 pandemic.
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