SHAH ALAM: Thousands of durian lovers who thronged Dataran Kemerdekaan here for the ‘Kendurian Makan Sampai Pengsan' today were left disappointed after being told that the durians were inedible.
Many durian fans arrived as early as 9.30am but barely 100 participated in the all-you-can-eat durian festival as most of the fruits, weighing 15 tonnes in total, were not ripe.
This left the durian enthusiasts furious with the event organiser.
Mohd Azrimal Sharifudin, 32, from Sungai Besi said he was disappointed as he had left home early just to eat durians at the festival.
“My friend and I left home at 10.30am to come here. But when we got here, the organiser told us that the durians were not ready as they received unripe ones from their supplier.
“It was frustrating because I am a ‘hantu durian’ (durian lover). I had also brought a big bottle of water and a knife just for this event,” said the manufacturing sector worker.
Building manager Armi Farid, 41, from Section 11 here, said his family was excited to join the festival after learning about it on social media.
“I received an invitation to this festival via WhatsApp. It said ‘kendurian sampai pengsan’ (eat durian until you pass out), so we were so excited and came here today.
“But when we arrived about 10.15am, the organiser said they had to cancel the event today. The organiser claimed that they were cheated by their supplier, and that they lost over RM200,000.
“What can we do? Now, we are going home. But I really pity the people who came here in droves.”
Factory worker Mohd Ridzuan Abas, 40, who came from Banting with his wife and their four children, shared a similar sentiment.
“I asked the organiser what happened and they said that the durians were not yet ripe. I took a day off from work today just to bring my wife and kids to eat durian, as they love the fruit so much.”
Grace Yong, 46, who came with her sister and friend from Sibu, Sarawak, said they decided come to the Klang Valley for a holiday after learning about the festival.
“I really wanted to see what a durian festival is like as there is nothing like this in Sarawak. So, we bought flight tickets to come here for a holiday so that we can join the all-you-can-eat durian event.
“We arrived here from our hotel in Kuala Lumpur about 9.30am and queued for two hours before the organiser announced that there is a problem with their durian supply.
“Disappointed is really an understatement,” she said.
Meanwhile, the event organiser, when met by the New Straits Times, said they apologise to those who came as the durians they received were what they ordered from their supplier.
Event manager Firdaus Abdullah said they have to stop the festival for the time being at as it would not be fair customers to be served with unripe fruits.
“If we let the festival go on, it is akin to cheating the customers. It would only create a much bigger problem.
“We really apologise. The durians we received this morning were not what had been promised by our supplier. Now, we are sorting things out, and we plan to get a new batch hopefully by today before reopening,” he said.
Firdaus said out of the 15 tonnes of durian they received, only 200kg were ripe.
The festival, which was promoted extensively on social media since the past week, allows customers to eat as many durians as they want. The entry fee is RM19 for adults and RM15 for kids.