KUALA LUMPUR, June 25 — The Kuala Lumpur Road Transport Department (KL JPJ) seized 43 vehicles driven by foreigners without valid driving licences during the Foreign Drivers Operation (PeWA), conducted around the Kampung Tasik Tambahan Recreation Park, Ampang today.

Its director, Hamidi Adam, said the vehicles were seized from 17 Myanmar drivers, eight Indonesian nationals, seven each from Bangladesh and Pakistan, and four Indian nationals.

“Out of the total number of vehicles seized, 12 of them belong to locals who rented them out to foreigners, involving three-wheeled vehicles and motorcycles, while the rest purchased motorcycles using local identity cards (IC) through an installment payment scheme, and some bought directly from locals.

“Registered vehicle owners should not allow foreigners to drive their vehicles without a valid licence or to misuse the Motor Vehicle Licence (LKM) for business purposes because strict action will be taken against the owners,” he said at a press conference after the operation that started at 7.30 am.

He said the investigation also found that the vehicles were rented out to foreigners who ran various types of businesses, including scrap metal, ice cream, snacks, bread, second-hand goods, and live chicken sales, with rental rates ranging from RM400 to RM500 per month.

“Any foreigner who does not possess a driving licence or vocational licence will be subject to action under Section 26(1) and Section 57 of the Road Transport Act 1987, while technical modification offences will be addressed under Section 6(1) of the same act.

“For vehicles that do not have insurance coverage, action can be taken under Section 90(1) of the Road Transport Act 1987,” he said.

Meanwhile, Hamidi said that last year, 688 cases were acted upon in the PeWA operation compared to 1,220 cases the previous year.

“However, for the period from January to June this year alone, 2,080 actions have been taken and this number is expected to continue to rise if operations are carried out continuously,” he also said.

He added that the actions of a small number of locals who lend their ICs to enable foreigners to own vehicles have been identified as one of the factors contributing to the increase in cases of vehicles driven by foreigners without valid driving licences. — Bernama