KUALA LUMPUR, May 4 — The long queue outside the Kenanga Wholesale City here that had gone viral on social media was due to workers reporting in for duty, rather than shoppers looking to buy clothes.

In a statement, operator KWC Fashion Wholesale said the crowd today was due to strict precautionary and hygiene measures that the mall has implemented since February due to Covid-19.

"On the first day of the conditional MCO, KWC strictly followed the recommended guidelines requiring all tenants and shoppers entering the mall to wear face masks, sanitise their hands, check their body temperature, record their contact information and practice social distancing of one meter.

"Since strict adherence to these time-consuming procedures have resulted in the formation of large crowds, management has decided to reduce registration procedures and increase the manpower,” it said.

A survey by Malay Mail this afternoon showed that the queue has already receded.

There are around 800 offices and businesses in the wholesale clothing mall, some of which reopened today due to the conditional movement control order (CMCO).

Astro Awani also reported earlier that the building management were taking the necessary steps to ensure the safety of their workers by taking temperature checks and details of those entering the mall today.

The report said that some staff had to clock in at 9am while others came in at 10am, as explanation for the long queue.

Similar scenes of long queues were seen today morning at Kota Raya mall in the heart of Kuala Lumpur where staff and a small number of customers were seen queueing to enter the mall.

That line receded within the hour.