Bukit Canberra Hawker Centre has decided to hold back on its Pay-It-Forward initiative where hawkers must provide free meals for the needy each month or risk being penalised.The issue was first raised by local food critic KF Seetoh on Aug 8, when he posted a screenshot of what appears to be a contract stating the breakdown of the requirement for the hawkers and calling it «forced charity».Amid public backlash, the management at Bukit Canberra Hawker Centre said in a Facebook post on Friday (Aug 15) that it will be removing the clauses requiring the provision of free meals when the tenancy agreements are renewed in September. The hawker centre is managed and operated by Canopy Hawkers Group, a subsidiary of Food Canopy.It added: «No hawkers have been penalised for not providing free meals under the tenancy agreements and we also do not intend to enforce the obligation in the future.»Seetoh's remarks about hawkers being «contractually forced» to provide budget meals priced up to $3.50 were also addressed. Read more