PBT never allowed foreigners to own business licence - Nga

KUALA LUMPUR, March 8 (Bernama) -- Local authorities (PBT) have never allowed foreigners to apply for or own a business licence for retail shops, eateries or premises in public markets.

Local Government Development Minister Nga Kor Ming said the approval of public market site rental and licence issuance is only for Malaysians, while foreigners working with public market tenants must have a valid work pass.

“PBT will not compromise on this and will revoke the licence of any local tenants found misusing it. In addition, enforcement operations are often carried out by PBT to curb this issue,” he said when winding up the debate on the Supply Bill 2023 at the policy level in Parliament today.

In a related development, Nga said any detention of foreigners or illegal immigrants is under the jurisdiction of the Immigration Department and Royal Malaysia Police.

As such, he said the Local Government Development Ministry (KPKT) agreed with the recommendations for strategic collaborations between several ministries to address people’s complaints effectively.

During the session, Nga also said that KPKT supports the efforts and role of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to intensify dog adoption programmes and promote responsible pet ownership ethics to curb the issue of pet dumping.

He also said the ministry had prepared standard operating procedures (SOP) for catching and disposing of stray dogs in PBT areas, which has been adopted by all PBTs since 2014.

“This SOP stipulates that the detention period for stray dogs caught is seven days for licenced dogs and two days for unlicenced dogs while waiting for the animal to be claimed by the owner or handed over to the public or an NGO for adoption programmes,” he said.

-- BERNAMA