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Nearly 50,000 Malay contractors forced to shut down since 2018 due to rising cost of building materials
KOTA BHARU, June 30 — Nearly 50,000 Malay contractors were forced to shut down their businesses because they could not renew their licences after being affected by the significant increase in the prices of building materials since 2018.
Malaysian Malay Contractors Association (PKMM) deputy president Datuk Mohd Rosdi Ab Aziz said the Covid-19 pandemic had also resulted in fewer projects, affecting most contractors from class G1 to G4.
“Among the factors that caused them to be unable to renew their licences was they did not have sufficient funds in their capital account according to their respective contractor classes.
“At the same time, the lack of projects has also resulted in them not being able to bear the entire cost required,” he told reporters after attending the 45th Kelantan PKMM Annual General Meeting here yesterday.
In this regard, Mohd Rosdi, who is also the Kelantan PKMM president, hoped that the government would always monitor the situation to help solve the problems faced by Malay contractors at this time.
“Most of these contractors cannot afford to venture into other fields due to financial constraints and some of them are also in debt after taking up loans with banks.
“Therefore, we ask the government to conduct more frequent monitoring and meetings with manufacturers to see the real factors behind this increase (in the prices of building materials),” he said. — Bernama