KOTA BARU: Nearly 50,000 Malay contractors were forced to shut down their businesses because they could not renew their licences following the significant increase in prices of building materials since 2018.
Malaysian Malay Contractors Association (PKMM) deputy president Datuk Mohd Rosdi Ab Aziz said the Covid-19 pandemic had resulted in fewer projects, which affected most contractors in class G1 to G4.
"A factor that made them unable to renew their licences is insufficient funds in their capital account based on their contractor class.
"The lack of projects has also resulted in them not being able to bear the entire cost required," he said after attending the 45th Kelantan PKMM annual general meeting here today.
Rosdi, who is also Kelantan PKMM president, said he hoped the government would monitor the situation to solve the problems Malay contractors were facing.
"Most of these contractors cannot afford to venture into other fields due to financial constraints. Some of them are in debt after taking up loans with banks.
"We ask the government to monitor the situation more frequently and meet manufacturers to understand the real factors behind this increase (in prices of building materials)." -- BERNAMA