Bangladesh News

The government yesterday warned Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (Baira) of making government-level deal with Malaysia in managing migration following allegations of Baira’s overcharging from the aspirant migrant workers.

“We will write to Malaysia for arranging the manpower employment deal at the government level if you continue overcharging the workers,” a Baira source quoted the State Minister for Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Lutfur Rahman Khan Azad as saying.

Following the withdrawal of a ban after a decade, Malaysia in July this year entrusted Baira with managing the migration of the workers. As Baira started working on it, allegations were made that Baira had been overcharging the workers and many agencies in Malaysia started persuading the employers for issuing job demand letters in their favour.

Against this background, the Malaysian government on October 4 imposed a temporary ban on hiring manpower from Bangladesh. The Malaysian authorities, however, started issuing visas from October 13, which is an apparent move to withdraw the ban.

At a meeting with Baira executive committee at the ministry, the state minister said the government will also ask Malaysia to stop the activities of Baira office in Kuala Lumpur as since the Baira president’s running an office in Kuala Lumpur without the resolution of Baira members is suspicious

The state minister said they have intelligence reports that Baira has been charging an additional 1,800 Ringgit (equivalent to Tk 36,000) from each worker.

In response to the minister’s allegations, Baira President MAH Salim said that on behalf of Baira he himself got 10 per cent share of Baira office in Kuala Lumpur, while three other Malaysians own the rest of the share.

The Malaysian government will not agree to re-start the management of manpower employment at the government level, the Baira president told this correspondent.

Asked about his share of Baira’s Kuala Lumpur office, Salim said, “According to Malaysian law, Baira as a trade body cannot have any share in Malaysia. Therefore, I, as the president of Baira, took the 10 per cent share.”

On the allegations of overcharging the aspirant workers for Malaysia, he said in addition to the $1200 that is fixed by the Malaysia and Bangladesh governments as the total migration fee for each worker, Baira is charging only 300 Ringgit or Tk 6,000 that is ‘required by the Malaysian Immigration Department’.

The minister could not present any document in support of his allegations, he said, adding that the workers, if overcharged, could directly complain to the government.

At a meeting held at Baira office in Dhaka yesterday, a Malaysian official delegation told Baira Secretary General Ali Haider Chowdhury to ensure that the agencies in Bangladesh, who got about 26,000 job approvals, report to Baira’s Kuala Lumpur office by October 20.

“If the agencies fail to report, the employer companies concerned in Malaysia who have got approval of jobs will not be given such approval further,” Ali Haider quoted a delegation member as saying.

The delegation expressed their willingness to continue the manpower employment process from Bangladesh, the Baira secretary general said.