Federal Territories Minister Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor has once again come under widespread criticism for asking soup kitchens providing food for the homeless to move out from a 2km radius of the city centre by Monday.

Former Bersih co-chaiperson Ambiga Sreenevasan described Tengku Adnan’s remarks, which came just a day after he said that beggars and those who donate to beggars will face action by local authorities, as “shocking”.

“We know how to solve the problem of hunger and poverty. We legislate against it,” Ambiga tweeted today.

PKR vice-presidents N Surendran and Nurul Izzah Anwar both also criticised the remarks.

“Tackle poverty first. Heartless,” Surendran tweeted.

Nurul Izzah also said she was shocked upon reading Tengku Adnan’s remarks, while describing them as inhumane.

“Even if he (Tengku Adnan) can’t live like a homeless person for three days to understand the difficulties of the marginalised, at least attend one session with one of the NGOs who have a soup kitchen. We should have more empathy as leaders,"”Izzah said in a statement today.

She questioned if Tengku Adnan’s conduct was appropriate to the spirit of the Ramadhan fasting month.

Meanwhile, Selangor state assembly deputy speaker Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad said that Tengku Adnan’s statement was “downright disappointing and callous”.

“What our cities need are forward-thinking policies rather than simply criminalising the poor as well as the people who seek to help them,” he added in a separate statement.

Tengku Adnan has said that he did not consider his actions to be harsh but instead necessary to create a “disciplined society”.

“This activity just encourages people to remain homeless and jobless. There have been many such people whom we have found jobs for, who returned to that life because they said it is easier,” Tengku Adnan said of the soup kitchens.

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