KUALA LUMPUR: According to government sources, Bestinet Sdn Bhd, a politically powerful private company that has long controlled Malaysia’s migrant labor recruitment system, is about to receive a new three-year contract to oversee the inflow of foreign workers into the nation.
The new contract highlights obstacles in Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s administration’s economic reform agenda. It kickstarts the Home Ministry’s plan, first reported by CNA last month, to replace Bestinet’s proprietary IT system that controls Malaysia’s intake of migrant workers.
According to sources, the company will be subject to stringent conditions under the proposed new arrangement, which could lead to further political maneuvering between the government and the influential Bestinet lobby behind closed doors.
According to sources, the Foreign Workers Centralized Management System (FWCMS), the company’s proprietary IT system, would force the company to give up control of its payment systems.
The Home Ministry, which works with the Human Resources Ministry to oversee the migrant labor recruitment system, notified Bestinet of the new requirements last week. At the end of May, the FWCMS’s previous contract with the government ended. Government officials say a new three-year agreement won’t be finalized until the company agrees to the revised terms.
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