LOCALS in Kuantan say they have been sidelined for jobs at the Malaysia-China Kuantan Industrial Park (MCKIP), claiming that most work opportunities within the enclosed park have instead been given to Chinese nationals.

Caretaker prime minister Najib Razak during MCKIP’s launch in 2013 promised that 8,500 jobs would be created by the joint investment, which he said would spur economic growth in the area.

However, locals say Chinese investment projects in Kuantan, such as the MCKIP and the Alliance Steel Mill in Gembeng, are merely enriching the Chinese nationals, as locals are being forced to move out of the state to look for work.

“The spillover is not reaching us. One of the strangest things is the government agreed to allow the Chinese to bring in their own workers and equipment from China. That in itself has brought down the economy,” said 57-year old contractor S. Sathyvelnaidu.

Banker Shahrim Abdul Kahar said his wife went for an interview at one of the companies in the MCKIP two months ago, but has yet to receive news from the would-be employer.

“My friends also went for interviews but did not get any news. The staff is 90% China Chinese,” he said.

“Our money goes to China. Nothing is here. Many of us are not getting jobs. Businesses are not growing. The Chinese are using our land, water and minimising costs for their selfish gains,” Shahrim said. 

The MCKIP hopes to attract Chinese investors by offering up to 15 years of tax exemption, import duty and sales tax exemption for raw materials and stamp duty exemption.

Retired school teacher Yong Sau Peng said Chinese investments like MCKIP have only benefitted China.

“There is a lot of them here, the China Chinese. They are not creating jobs for us, they make use of the cheap resources. China is exploiting us. They are good in doing that. We will be economically colonised,” he said.

A Kuantan shop owner Fauziah said MCKIP has become a “mini-Chinese settlement”, and has apartments, restaurants and clinics for the Chinese nationals working there.

“But the security to get in there is very tight. We are also not allowed to go in and see,” she said.

Pakatan Harapan’s Indera Makhota candidate Saifuddin Abdullah said Gembeng reminds him of China, adding that if voted into Putrajaya, the coalition will review projects in MCKIP to ensure that locals benefited more from them.

“Its physical presence is intimidating. With its high walls and locals are forbidden from entering, it is like a ‘Great Wall of China’ in the middle of Kuantan,” he told Malaysia Decides. – May 4, 2018.