MIGRANT workers have taken over a row of shops near Kuala Lumpur wholesale market, selling all manner of goods from vegetables to fresh seafood, according to local traders.

They claim that the workers have set up shop on the market’s outskirts on Jalan 2/3A in Batu Caves, Selangor.

Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) prevents wet market stalls from recruit migrant workers, which is one of the main reasons that led to the mushrooming of these shops, business owners said.

Kuala Lumpur Hoi Seong Fish Wholesaler Association chairman Sing Kian Hock said, since 2018, some workers have started renting lorries and selling goods out of them.

From 2019, they started operating their own stores and, to date, there are 20 shops, he said.

Sing said the foreigners would pay locals RM2,000 to RM3,000 as proxies to rent a shop under their names.

Since it is a grocery store licence, DBKL will take not action against the shops, he said.

“This is a loophole in the law and the workers are taking advantage of it to start their own business,” Sing told The Malaysian Insight.

“Some of them are refugees. They used to sell by the roadside but now they are running shops, so it is difficult for law enforcement.

These shops have led to a 30% decline in seafood sales at the wet market, Sing said.

“We don’t know if they pay taxes. They also operate 24 hours a day, while we are only open eight to nine hours a day.

“The street is now overrun by foreigners and it is quite scary.”

Their poor hygiene has also contributed to the mounds of rubbish on the street, he said, adding that they are also very enterprising.

“Customers need to only call them, place their order, and come and pick it up once it is ready.”

Vegetable stalls heavily affected

Kuala Lumpur Vegetable Wholesalers’ Association president Wong Keng Fatt said the ban by DBKL means all his previous employees are now their own “bosses”, having set up shop outside the wet market.

“They are mostly from Bangladesh (70%) and Myanmar (30%). Some also hold UNHCR refugee status,” Wong said.

“Whenever Rela, DBKL and the Ministry of Trade and Consumer Affairs raid the area, they go into hiding.”

Wong said he has also heard of migrant workers “borrowing” the name of locals to get a business licence.

In reality, the shops are jointly run by five to six people and they give a “cut” to the local proxy on a monthly basis for his part in getting them the licence.

“These shops are often visited by their fellow community, but some locals buy from them too.”

Wong said trade for local business has dropped by 20% since the shops started operating.

“My former worker also warned me that they have my picture posted on their social media group informing them to be aware of me. I’ve even gone to the police because of this.”

Meanwhile, Wong said locals are now more willing to work at the market due to high daily wages.

The Malaysian Insight visited the street in question and saw foreign nationals loading and unloading goods.

Some worked for local bosses, while others worked for other foreign workers. Many of the customers were also foreigners.

A The Malaysian Insight check found that the street was kept relatively clean.

However, it was a one-way street, so there were many cars queuing behind lorries that were unloading goods.

Speaking to one of the workers at the shop, the man who did not want to be named said he was once a migrant worker.

He also corroborated that some of the shops were owned by locals, while others were owned by foreigners like himself.

Long-time problem

Batu MP P. Prabakaran said he heard that migrant workers had been operating in the area for a long time.

Some were employed by locals, he said, while others are now running their own shops through proxies.

Prabakaran said he will be meeting with Kuala Lumpur Wholesale Market Chamber of Commerce to understand the extent of the problem.

“This seems to be a seasonal problem. When the authorities shut them down, they come back soon after.

“Even when I went to check for myself, they mistook me for law enforcement and disappeared. It is as if they know I’m coming.”

Prabakaran said since some of the foreign nationals hold UNHCR status, they cannot legally work in Malaysia.

However, he said he has reported the hygiene issue to DBKL, which has stepped up sanitisation.

While the street and shops are run by foreigners, Prabakaran said he has not heard of any security problems.

During the movement control order, DBKL banned foreign workers and UNHCR cardholders from entering or working at Kuala Lumpur Wholesale Market.

According to DBKL, the ban was in line with the enforcement of the Wholesale Markets (Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur) 2002 by-laws that no more foreign labour should be involved in the sector. – September 22, 2022.