By Isabelle Wilson-
An elderly couple from Malaysia have passed away after consuming poisonous pufferfish, leading their family to call for stricter regulations on the dish.
The couple, Ng Chuan Sing and Lim Siew Guan, had unknowingly purchased at least two pufferfish from an online vendor on March 25, according to officials in the state of Johor.
In Japan and Korea, only chefs with at least three years experience are legally allowed to prepare the fish.
The sale of poisonous and harmful food—such as pufferfish meat is still sold at many wet markets.
Records show 58 incidents of pufferfish poisoning have been reported in the country between 1985 and 2023, resulting in 18 fatalities.
Ng’s daughter has called for accountability for her parents death, and wants to see tighter laws in Malaysia to prevent a recurrence of this tragedy.
The victim’s daughter, Ng Ai Lee, 51, her father, Eng Kuai Sin @ Ng Chuan Sing, 84, bought the fish from a peddler who sells from a van that comes to his old folks’ home.
She said her family was sad and regrets that the seller did not inform her father, a regular customer, that the fish he bought was poisonous.
“This is the first time my father had bought this type of fish. When my brother brought my parents to the hospital, my father told him that he did not know the fish he bought was puffer fish and was poisonous.
I contacted the seller before my mother passed away, and it’s true that my father has been buying fish from this seller roughly once a week.
“The seller said that he has been selling puffer fish all this while and his customers have been okay. The seller also said that the poisoning could be due to other food or my parents’ health,” she said when contacted.
Ng said her mother was buried in a Chinese cemetery near their house today, while her father still lay unconscious in the intensive care unit (ICU) at Enche’ Besar Hajjah Khalsom Hospital,
“I hope the authorities will take appropriate action so that no one else will become a casualty because the sale of poisonous fish is not regulated.
“An earlier statement that said my father bought the fish via Facebook is not true. Right now my family is facing a difficult time and we don’t know what actions to take, other than make a police report.
“However, we hope that the authorities will do right by my parents who fell victim to the irresponsibility of the fish seller, who would risk other people’s lives for their own benefit,” she said.
Online Vendor
Ng Chuan Sing and wife Lim Siew Guan, both in their 80s, purchased the fish from an online vendor on Mar. 25, as first reported by CNN, citing authorities in Johor, a state in southern Malaysia.
Their daughter, Ng Ai Lee, said that her parents had bought fish from the same fishmonger “for many years so my father did not think twice about it,” according to The Star, an English-language newspaper in Malaysia.
They experienced “breathing difficulties and shivers” shortly after Ms Guan fried the fish and were quickly rushed to the hospital.
Despite being admitted to intensive care, Guan was pronounced dead mere hours later, and Sing fell into a coma for eight days before passing away on Saturday morning
Puffer fish not friend properly is poisonous Image: The Star / Facebook
The local state district health office has reportedly opened an investigation to identify the supplier, wholesaler and seller.
“We urge the public to be careful when choosing their food, especially if it has known risks,” Ling said in a statement, the outlet reported.
.Ng Ai Lee, their daughter, has since called for stronger laws in Malaysia, where at least 30 species of pufferfish are commonly found.
The couple’s deaths have sparked public outrage, and the authorities are now investigating the incident.
“The state district health office has opened investigations under the Food Act 1983… and carried out an investigation on the ground to identify the supplier, wholesaler and seller of the pufferfish,” said Ling Tian Soon, chief of the Johor Health and Unity Committee.