The Human Resources Ministry’s selection of approved Bangladesh Recruitment Agencies (BRAs) will not be influenced by support letters from elected parliamentarians or even from Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob.
When contacted, Human Resources Minister M Saravanan said such letters obtained by Malaysian recruitment agencies lobbying on behalf of their partners from Bangladesh is a “normal practice”.
“That’s normal. But it ends with us receiving the letter.
“Because any interested (recruitment) companies (in Bangladesh), need to submit a formal application. Not via a support letter from other parties,” Saravanan told Malaysiakini.
The minister explained that this meant the recruitment agency must apply and send its company profile, with all the details, to the ministry.
“Not just one single page with a company’s name. We will not entertain it,” he said.
Saravanan said this when asked for comments regarding two recommendation letters signed by Jempol MP Sharif Salim and Parit MP Nizar Zakaria, seeking Ismail Sabri’s support for a request to include four BRAs on the ministry’s approved sending list.
Malaysiakini sighted the signed letters dated Aug 2, issued under Sharif and Nizar’s formal letterheads, with identical content except for the names of the recommended BRAs.
“The recommendation of these two agencies is to meet high demands for workers from Bangladesh because it is feared that the appointments of only 25 BRAs will not be enough for Malaysia’s labour market,” the letters state.
While the name of the Malaysian agency and its owner who lobbied for the recommendation is unclear, both Sharif and Nizar - who confirmed issuing the letters - told Malaysiakini they were met in Parliament by a man said to be from Jelebu.
‘Normal’ practice
Both Umno lawmakers said signing such recommendation letters for various requests is a normal practice for MPs.
“As an MP, I just give my support. There is no issue.
“This person came a long way to see me in Parliament, asking for a letter, so I just gave one,” said Sharif, stressing that he did not personally know the agency owner or have any interest in lobbying for the BRAs.
Similarly, Nizar also said he issued the recommendation letter as requested, with no vested interest in the recruitment of migrant workers.
“It is just a support letter. People asked for it, and we gave it.
“I don’t know the person, but he’s the same person who went to see Datuk Seri Sharif.
“I’m not a business person. I don’t have any personal interest in recruiting workers,” Nizar added when contacted.
Saravanan reiterated that the selection of BRAs approved to send workers here had been carried out by the ministry’s evaluation panel, including the current list of 25 agencies.
“Even though there was a list of over 1,500 BRAs, the final list of 25 agencies were selected from only 61 that submitted their complete details from company directors, financial status and others.
“So these kinds of (recommendation) letters, that’s normal. We will just take note of it,” he said.
Last month, the MACC launched a probe into the selection of 25 Bangladesh recruitment agencies authorised by Malaysia, following multiple reports lodged against alleged irregularities in the process.
Among others, Penang PKR Youth, in its report, highlighted the alleged monopoly in the recruitment process, the integrity of companies involved in the process and the alleged corruption in the selection process of the companies that will carry out the recruitment.
Even as investigations are ongoing, Malaysia, on Aug 9, proceeded to receive the first batch of Bangladeshi migrant workers recruited under new bilateral terms signed in last December’s labour recruitment memorandum of understanding. - Mkini
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