Employers must furnish details on how they house their foreign workers, says Annuar Musa

KOTA BHARU, Feb 7 — The Federal Territories Ministry will make it compulsory for every employer to provide details about accommodation for the foreign workers being hired in order to obtain the development order approval.

Its minister, Tan Sri Annuar Musa said this was to ensure that these workers would not be living in over-crowded kongsi houses in line with the government’s efforts in curbing the spread of Covid-19 among foreign workers in the federal territories.

“We make this condition mandatory but it will be implemented in stages as several centralised labour quarters (CLQ) will need to be provided,” he told reporters after launching the Ketereh parliamentary constituency’s People’s Sanitisation Awareness Programme at the Tuan Guru Haji Musa Mosque in Bukit Marak, here, today.

The CLQ is an accommodation concept for the companies in various sectors to provide accommodation with various facilities such as transportation for their foreign workers.

Annuar said his ministry had so far identified five locations for the CLQ in Kuala Lumpur including near the Selayang Wholesale Market with an area size of between 0.6 and 1.6 hectares, and in Precinct 20, Putrajaya with an area size of 10.1 hectares which could accommodate a total of 20,000 to 40,000 foreign workers.

He said the ministry would also be enhancing coordination with the local authorities and Human Resource Ministry in determining the number and presence of foreign workers at the construction sites.

“The Federal Territories Ministry issues the project approval licence while the Human Resource Ministry issues the work permits but sometimes, there is no coordination because we don’t know who are those who will be coming to work as it’s not the responsibility of Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL).

“Then they (foreign workers) come and are placed at crowded construction sites and there is no doubt anymore over the spread of Covid-19 at the construction sites,” he added.

Meanwhile,  Annuar urged the residents’ associations to raise awareness among residents on the need to adhere to the standard operating procedure (SOP), especially after the government has relaxed certain rulings like allowing night markets, salons and barber shops to operate amid the Chinese New Year celebration approaching.

“The Federal Territories, particularly Kuala Lumpur, must be managed differently due to the many activities going on and high population density. So, if the Covid-19 spreads, it spreads fast. That is why we call on the residents’ associations or joint management committee at each condominium to enforce a community-based SOP,” he said.

Annuar said he had also asked DBKL to assist the Malaysian Armed Forces and Royal Malaysia Police in monitoring the SOP compliance in the federal capital. — Bernama