The Human Resources Ministry was today given rare praise by an opposition MP for swiftly responding to industry complaints over foreign worker recruitment.
In a statement today, Beruas MP Ngeh Khoo Ham said he had on July 26 in Parliament debunked Human Resources Minister M Saravanan's claim that employers can apply for foreign workers online without an agent.
Following this, Ngeh said he was called for two meetings with Saravanan, where the former provided proof that agents were paying bribes of RM1,500 to those in the Human Resources Ministry for each foreign worker sought by employers.
"I also questioned (the minister on) why applications and interviews (for employers) can only be done at the Human Resources Ministry in Putrajaya.
"This allowed some of those in control of the application system and appointments to seek bribes," he said.
Ngeh said three days after his complaint in the Dewan Rakyat, the Human Resources Ministry released a statement allowing employers to attend interviews in their respective states.
"After the announcements, ministry officers worked tirelessly to inform employers that they should attend interviews in their respective states.
"Many employers (told me) they were surprised by this development and thanked me for exposing the matter in Parliament. I am very happy and welcome this positive development," he said.
Meanwhile, Ngeh said the process could be improved further by removing redundancies.
For instance, he said poultry farmers would need to seek permission from the Veterinary Department to employ foreign workers and then be interviewed by the Human Resources Ministry again.
Ngeh said the application process should only take one step.
He added that the levy to be paid for recruiting foreign workers can only be paid at the Home Ministry in Putrajaya and suggested that this process be moved online.
"There are also allegations of rampant corruption in the Home Ministry in relation to the application for foreign workers.
"I hope the Home Ministry follows the example shown by the Human Resources Ministry and allows all procedures for foreign worker recruitment to be performed at the immigration department offices in respective states," he said. - Mkini
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