KUALA LUMPUR – Bestinet Sdn Bhd today refuted claims by former Klang MP Charles Santiago that the firm acts as a broker in the recruitment of migrant workers into the country.
In a statement today, Bestinet said it is merely an information technology (IT) company that developed the Foreign Workers Centralised Management System (FWCMS) for the government.
The IT firm also denied that it acts as a recruitment agency or is involved in the operation of migrant worker recruitment processes whether in Malaysia or in any labour source countries, including Bangladesh.
“Bestinet would like to place on record that all matters regarding the recruitment process of foreign workers, including the number of recruitment agents, are discussed and agreed upon on a government-to-government level between the government of Malaysia and the labour source countries. Bestinet’s management, including the founder, is not involved in nor privy to this process.
“The company would also like to point out that contrary to Santiago’s claim of only 25 companies being accredited for worker recruitment in Bangladesh, the government has, in fact, accredited 100 companies in Bangladesh,” said Bestinet.
The company said it took Santiago’s allegations seriously and demanded an immediate apology from the former parliamentarian, reserving the right to seek legal redress over the matter.
“The company regrets that Charles Santiago has chosen to issue untruthful and misleading allegations against Bestinet without seeking any dialogue. Bestinet is demanding an immediate apology and a retraction by Charles Santiago,” it said.
This follows Santiago’s statement yesterday calling for the transfer of the management of migrant workers from the Home Affairs Ministry and Human Resources Ministry to the Prime Minister’s Office.
He said migrant worker recruitment and management should be placed under the supervision of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and be directed by a former judge, chief executive officer, or a retired senior civil servant.
The former lawmaker also said that the Bestinet portal had been “controlled by a major labour broker” and should be dismantled.
“Government servants and politicians who work with these brokers and politicians often front labour recruitment agencies.
“The recruitment process must be open and transparent in both countries. Charges for health, air travel etc must be made public to migrants,” Santiago had said.
Last year, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) was reported to have raided Bestinet’s headquarters as part of an investigation into the allegedly dubious selection of 25 Bangladesh recruiting agencies tasked with sending their workers here.
According to a Bangladesh news site, Bestinet’s founder, who is also a Bangladesh national, was not detained, but was among several others who were questioned over the selection process of recruitment agencies.
Based on the report, which quoted a Malaysian diplomatic source, the founder was also investigated over his ties with several politicians, including cabinet ministers, while the MACC wanted to identify the criteria used to select the 25 companies. – The Vibes, April 16, 2023
