'Raids alone not enough': Mydin boss wants tougher enforcement against foreign-run businesses

 

Enforcement against illegal foreign-run businesses must be sustained and not seasonal, says retailer Datuk Dr Ameer Ali Mydin. - NSTP/MOHAMAD SHAHRIL BADRI SAALI

KUALA LUMPUR: Enforcement against illegal foreign-run businesses must be sustained and not seasonal, says retailer Datuk Dr Ameer Ali Mydin.

Ameer, managing director of the Mydin chain of hypermarkets and vice-president of the Malaysia Retailers Association, said retailers had long raised concerns about the growing presence of illegal foreign traders.

He claimed that such traders had expanded beyond traditional hotspots — such as Jalan Masjid India, Chow Kit, Petaling Street and Kota Raya — into smaller towns and neighbourhoods nationwide.

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He welcomed Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's directive for action on the matter.

"I hope, for once, concrete action will be taken by all the authorities, including the Immigration Department and local councils," he said when contacted yesterday.

Anwar raised the issue of illegal foreign-run businesses at Friday's cabinet meeting and instructed authorities to take action against errant traders.

"Today, you can see foreign traders operating grocery shops almost everywhere, including in small towns.

"The problem is that they occupy the very spaces where local entrepreneurs, especially Bumiputra, should be able to start small and grow," said Ameer, an adviser to the Bumiputera Retail Organisation.

However, Ameer said he was unsure whether the prime minister's directive would result in meaningful change, citing short-lived enforcement efforts in the past.

"Yesterday, I was in Jalan Masjid India and saw foreign traders operating again.

"Previously, after enforcement operations, they disappeared, but now they are back."

He said enforcement needed to move beyond raids and called for a task force to ensure illegal foreign-run businesses were permanently shut down.

Ameer said authorities should also look into the alleged abuse of Malaysian-owned business licences rented out to foreigners.

"If a licence is under a Malaysian's name, authorities can investigate where the business revenue is going and whose bank account is receiving the money." - NST