'I already treat them as brothers': Homeless man forgives influencers over chicken bone meal incident
Dennis, 47, who has been living on the streets near Merlin Tower in Johor Bahru for about a year, told China Press that he was simply grateful to receive food, regardless of its contents.
ALSO READ: Malaysian content creators face backlash for homeless prank
'I didn't know what they were up to. I thought they were just giving me food, so I opened it and found it was chicken rice — but it had a lot of bones in it,' he recalled.
The now-deleted video, which sparked outrage online, showed three young men eating KFC chicken before allegedly placing the leftover bones into a food packet and handing it to Dennis as part of a social media stunt.
The group has since provided statements to the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).
Despite the backlash, Dennis has remained calm and forgiving.
'I'm thankful to anyone who gives me food. I've never blamed those five men,' he said.
According to Dennis, the group later returned to apologise, and he made it clear that he held no grudge.
'I already treat them as brothers,' he was quoted as saying.
Police officers reportedly visited Dennis the night before to gather information about the incident, and he said he gave them a full account of what had happened.
Originally from Perak and raised in Johor, Dennis continues to take shelter outside Merlin Tower, where the encounter occurred.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Malaysiakini
an hour ago
- Malaysiakini
'Allow space for transparent probe into deaths of Zara and Syamsul'
PKR Youth's Legal and Public Complaints Bureau has urged the public to allow space for an independent, thorough, and transparent investigation into the deaths of Zara Qairina Mahathir and Syamsul Haris Shamsudin. In a statement, bureau head Khairul Naim Rafidi extended condolences to the families of the two young victims, noting the profound impact their deaths have had on their loved ones and the wider Malaysian public.
The Star
3 hours ago
- The Star
Consular aid for M'sians set on fire in Bangkok
PUTRAJAYA: The Foreign Ministry, through its embassy in Bangkok, is providing assistance to two Malaysians injured in an incident in Ratchadamri, Bangkok. Both victims are being treated in separate hospitals following the incident on Aug 7, the ministry said in a statement. The embassy is liaising with the attending medical teams and facilitating travel for the victims' family members, Bernama reported. Consular officers have visited the victims and are working to ensure they and their families receive the necessary support. The ministry said Thai authorities are conducting a full investigation into the incident. It was reported that the two Malaysian tourists, a man identified as Ong, 26, and a woman known as Gan, 27, were critically injured after being set on fire by a man in Thailand's capital.
New Straits Times
3 hours ago
- New Straits Times
One in five workers has no workplace accident coverage
KUALA LUMPUR: Nearly one in five Malaysian workers is not covered by the safety net from the Social Security Organisation (Perkeso). Data gathered through Perkeso's enforcement operations revealed that between 17 and 20 per cent of employers have yet to register their workers for the work protection schemes. "This means that in any random inspection, nearly one in every five workers is without workplace accident coverage due to employers' non-compliance," said Perkeso group chief executive officer Datuk Seri Dr Mohammed Azman Aziz Mohammed. He added that although there was no data on the number of unregistered workers, Perkeso currently had 10.05 million active employees in its records. The number comprised Malaysian and foreign workers in the private sector, as well as contract and temporary workers in the civil service. But that figure is about 2.5 million short of the total 12.56 million employees (Malaysian, foreign and contract civil service workers) reported by the Statistics Department in May. Non-compliance among Malaysian employers, said Azman, was rampant in the hospitality, food and beverage (F&B), manufacturing, wholesale and retail sectors. He said 17,482 summonses or compound notices had been issued to errant employers from 2022 to this year. The organisation, he said, had collected RM3,937,555 in fines since 2020, with modern technologies available, employers should not trifle with their contributions. Azman said Perkeso could employ data-matching, smart analytics and cross-agency collaborations to detect irregularities or missing contributions by employers trying to dodge their responsibilities. The organisation also conducted routine and targeted inspections, as well as special operations, besides following up on complaints and whistleblower reports. "Typically, an initial review is conducted within three to seven working days upon receiving a complaint. "Depending on complexity, most cases are resolved within 30 days. "However, if legal action is required, such as taking the employer to court, the process may take longer due to legal procedures and timelines," he said, adding that while Perkeso treated all complaints equally, cases involving a larger group of workers might be prioritised due to their wider impact. In the case of foreign workers, Azman said Perkeso was still determining the latest compliance rate among employers, pending cross-data validation with the Immigration Department. Azman said estimating the number of unregistered foreign workers was challenging due to constant new entries, renewals, repatriations and database discrepancies, but Perkeso was working to improve its data alignment with relevant agencies. A key measure included integrating its system with the Immigration Department to require employers to register their foreign workers for workplace coverage before work permits were issued by the latter. "This proactive approach aims to ensure that all eligible foreign workers are covered under Malaysia's social protection system from the outset of employment," he said. Azman said industries with the highest non-compliance rates in registering foreign workers were construction, plantation and agriculture, manufacturing, and services such as cleaning, hospitality and security. "These industries often rely heavily on foreign labour, including contract or casual workers, which can contribute to under-registration and non-compliance," he said. Azman said many employers cited ignorance or confusion of the process for not registering their foreign workers. "They assume that coverage under a private insurance scheme is sufficient or perceive that foreign workers are temporary or short-term hires and thus, not required to register. "Cost-related concerns, administrative oversight or failure to update employment records are also factors of non-compliance," he said. To address this, Perkeso had intensified enforcement in high-risk industries with the Labour and Immigration Departments, besides running multilingual awareness campaigns and engaging industry groups to drive compliance. It provides advisory support to help employers, especially small and medium-scale enterprises, resolve technical barriers in registration. It is also integrating its MYFutureJobs database with the Immigration Department's Expatriate Pass Application System to identify unregistered foreign workers based on work permit issuances and job placements.
