KUALA LUMPUR: Bukit Bintang Member of Parliament, Fong Kui Lun, has lodged a report with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to urge them to launch an investigation into the licensing issue concerning the Bukit Bintang Ramadan bazaar, organised by Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL).
The report, among others, was made to enable a probe to be made against DBKL’s Licensing and Petty Traders Development Department director, Anwar Mohd Zain, who had said that he was prompted to issue bazaar trading licenses after a support letter was issued by Fong.
Fong claimed he found that DBKL had collected around RM4,000 for each trading lot.
“This does not make sense as they are trading only a few days during Ramadan.
“What DBKL is doing can encourage bribery, and it can also indirectly lead to traders increasing the prices of their goods to make up the cost.
“If DBKL, as an executive body, is transparent and responsible, issues like this would not happen. I hope the MACC can investigate this matter,” he told reporters after lodging a report at the commission’s headquarters here today.
Also present was Cheras Member of Parliament Tan Kok Wai.
Tan said the ‘tradition’ of issuing support letters by MPs would be continued, depending on the situation.
“Support letters become an issue when they are misused.
“We will continue this ‘tradition’ to help those who need it, especially single mothers,” he said.
Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM) Bukit Bintang Youth chief, Mohd Noorhisyam Abd Karim, was dragged into the controversy after he was accused of misusing his political connections to secure 80 bazaar lots in Jalan Masjid India from DBKL for RM6,238.40 and allegedly rented them out for as high as RM5,000 per lot through middlemen.
He had obtained a support letter from Fong for the additional lots.
Noorhisyam has since denied any wrongdoing in the matter. He said the accusations were tantamount to slander and was a bid to create a rift between him and Fong.
On Wednesday, a group of Jalan Masjid India traders denied that they had paid RM5,000 for the Ramadan bazaar lots. The group said they were running their business for free for five days at the bazaar.
They believed that the problem could have stemmed from a case of mistaken identity, as the lots which were being rented out were handled by another person named ‘Sam’, which also a nickname for Noorhisyam, tied to another association.
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