After photos surfaced of a rat running on baked goods at a Komugi bakery, mall-goers have expressed worry about the cleanliness of Mid Valley Megamall where the outlet is located in.

Malaysiakini's visit to the shopping mall today found the baked goods franchise outlet shuttered while investigations and corrective measures are being taken after the rodent incident.

However mall-goers are not satisfied with just the closure of the outlet as they worry that the rodent menace may affect other venues, and this could be dangerous to patrons as rats are dirty animals that can potentially spread disease.

Nurul Adina Mohd Puad who works at Mid Valley, said that she saw not only rats but also cockroaches while eating at the shopping mall's food court.

She said that while she is aware that conditions at the food court may be dirty, she and her friends frequent the place as it is cheaper than other restaurants.

"There are a lot of rats in Mid Valley, I once screamed when I came face to face with one. The management must take heed.

"Those who work here will go to the food court to eat. To me, the food court is not that clean. There are rats and cockroaches. But we have no choice as it is the cheapest alternative," said Nurul Adina (in red headscarf) who has worked in the area for two years.

For Mardiah Mahmud, even though the Komugi outlet is temporarily closed for clean-up work, the stigma that the shop is dirty won't be easily displaced from her mind.

"Now I am afraid, as it happened to me personally, I wouldn't want to go back even after it is cleaned up. I will not frequent the place again as there is still the stigma that it is dirty.

"I am also careful not to go into shops like that if I am not familiar with it, even if it has a halal certificate." 

Resolve the matter soon

Mall-goer Mohd Nizam Zin (photo) said that the management must resolve the matter as soon as possible, as rodents are dangerous pests.

He said that he is certain that Mid Valley imposes high rental on its tenants, as such he said that the management must conduct regular pest control operations to head off problems.

"With a big mall like this, from the outside it looks okay, but inside, who knows. The management should look into this as tenants pay a lot of rent. Even if this is an isolated incident, it must be taken seriously.

"I was worried when this occurred as nowadays there are (diseases) spread by rat urine, things like this should not have occurred at a place like this. It should be taken seriously.

"Mid Valley rakes in a lot of money, so it is not a problem to conduct regular pest control operations. It might not be a problem now, but don't wait until something happens before they act," he said.

University Malaya student Shahidah Akmal Abdul Rahman (photo) said that after the rat incident, she is more careful in choosing a place to eat.

She added that restaurateurs and the management should join hands to solve the problem without pointing fingers at each other.

"I think that the management should conduct monthly checks on cleanliness of the premises, let it not be beautiful on the outside but under the ground it's a different story. Komugi cannot lay all the blame on the management, they must work together (to solve the problem)," she said.

Yesterday the baked goods chain issued an open apology after a photo of a rat walking on a tray full of baked goods in its Mid Valley outlet went viral on social media with more than 5,400 shares and 2,000 comments at press time.

The bakery franchise said that the presence of rats was a known issue at the popular mall and was said to have occurred before.

Komugi also said that it has informed the mall management over the matter.

The picture uploaded by Facebook user Melon Roux on Sunday did not name the outlet but the decor and design motif seen in the photo clearly identified which bakery it was.

In April 2014, it was reported that a woman watching a movie at the mall's cineplex had her toe bitten, presumably by a rat.

Malaysiakini visited the mall today to get a response from the management about the matter, though they have refused to comment.