KOTA KINABALU – The economic migration of Sabahans to Peninsular Malaysia has crippled the state’s development and economic recovery efforts, said Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri M. Saravanan.
He said some 45,900 Sabahans have migrated out of the state to find better jobs in 2020, with more state youth following suit in the next two years.
Saravanan said the mass migration of local workers had caused a significant reduction of the state’s own talent pool.
“Each year, many of the youth in Sabah migrate to other places like Peninsular Malaysia for work… Indirectly, this had crippled Sabah’s development,” he said, adding that the situation in Sabah could worsen as the country enters the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR 4.0) phase.
(So) what’s the point (of Sabah) asking for more development funds? What is the point in getting more money if Sabahans are migrating elsewhere?”
The Tapah MP said this during the launching of the HRD Corp Open Day, which was held at the Sabah International Convention Centre, here, today.
The mass migration trend is expected to be compounded by the massive construction of Indonesia’s new capital city in Kalimantan.
Saravanan said all the agencies under his ministry are now focusing on reskilling and upskilling young Sabahans, adding that these two strategies are a holistic approach to pave a way forward for human capital retention and adapting to the advancements in IR 4.0.
He said his ministry is also focusing on educating parents on how to decide on their children’s education paths.
The minister said parents should make choices that would make their children employable, and not choose courses that would leave them jobless in the future.
Saravanan said upskilling and elevating competency is the way to deal with low salaries for the state’s workers, stressing that his ministry’s role is to develop the country’s human capital, and not merely to create jobs.
Noting the ministry’s shift of focus on Sabah and Sarawak, Saravanan said it is the role of the federal and state governments to attract investments and subsequently, create job opportunities for the masses.
Sabah secured a total of RM4.37 billion in investments in 2020, with the state government vowing to create thousands of jobs for locals, but the unemployment rate in the state has spiked to 9% last year – the highest in the country.
On Bangladeshi recruitment agencies: selection based on stringent criteria
On the issue of Bangladeshi recruitment agencies for Malaysia, Saravanan said the decision on the number of agencies should be the prerogative of the source country.
He noted it was a joint decision between Malaysia and Bangladesh to increase from 10 to 25 recruitment agencies.
“When I met the Bangladeshi prime minister, he agreed on 25. The ministers also agreed on 25. It’s not one person who decides,” said Saravanan, who appeared to be visibly agitated by the issue.
If so (one person decides), then we must go to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), and someone must go to jail.”
Saravanan was responding to issues raised by Klang MP Charles Santiago, who called for greater scrutiny on the agencies in order to minimise the risk of labour violations.
The DAP politician had also noted the possibility of only a few individuals being behind all the 25 agencies.
However, Saravanan insisted there were no “criminal” elements in the decision, as the selection of the agencies involved stringent processes.
“If he (Santiago) wants to know (about the agencies), he can ask me in Parliament.”
“Why are Malaysian MPs suddenly talking for Bangladeshi agencies? They may have a vested interest in this.”
In December last year, Malaysia and Bangladesh signed a memorandum of understanding on the recruitment of Bangladeshi workers, effective for five years until December 2026.
‘Stupid’ idea to legalise undocumented migrants for workforce: Saravanan
On the suggestion that the government should utilise existing undocumented migrants as replacements for migrant workers, Saravanan said the proposal, which came from a non-governmental organisation (NGO), was “stupid”.
He said the only right thing to do for this group is to deport irregular migrants back to their home countries.
Tell the NGO that this is a stupid idea. When someone enters your country illegally, you must deport them, not legalise them,” he said.
“Do you think every NGO has brains? If you legalise those who enter your country illegally, that means more will be coming to your country illegally.”
Saravanan said the opposition MPs and the NGOs are trying to be “smart” due to their extensive media coverage.
“Because (when) most of the media have no news, any donkey (that) says (anything), they will write.” – The Vibes, June 16, 2022
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