|
Millions not
paid out
We just don’t have the money, SPNB tells 34 contractors
28/10/2009 The Malay Mail
ROSLAN: A number of contractors have not received payment for projects
carried out
A SIGNIFICANT number of Class A bumiputera contractors throughout the
country have not been paid by Syarikat Perumahan Negara Bhd (SPNB) for
development projects carried out over the years.
The amount owed for these projects is believed to be worth millions of
ringgit.
Malay Mail has learnt that when confronted by the contractors, SPNB gave
the excuse that it didn’t have the money to make the payments.
Sources said 34 of these contractors were given the “we have no money”
answer by SPNB in August.
The Malaysian Malay Contractors Association said yesterday the allegations
carried weight and that some of its members had lodged reports with the
association, seeking its intervention in their problem.
Association chairman Datuk Roslan Awang Chik said the claims from the
contractors were legitimate.
“Yes, some contractors have yet to be paid for various projects that were
undertaken,” he said yesterday.
Asked if the amount due was more than RM 500 million, Awang said he could
not give the exact amount as the matter was being investigated.
“There is quite a serious backlog of payments owed but it is not quite
alarming,” he said.
He said his association had received complaints and had heard the
grievances of members.
“We are trying to make sure the payments due are made. We have conveyed
this to SPNB but have yet to receive a reply.
“I have even conveyed this personally to the chairman of SPNB,” Roslan
added.
He said the matter was reported to the association a few weeks ago and it
would have a meeting on this early next month.
As to whether it was true that contractors had been told the reason for
non-payment was because SPNB did not have the money, Roslan said “All I
can say is that the contractors were not paid according to the contract
schedule.”
Those affected were Class A contractors involved in major SPNB projects
and included those from Sabah and Sarawak.
Efforts to contact SPNB proved futile while the Finance Ministry, which
fully owns SPNB, declined comment.
SPNB was set up in 1997 with the objective of providing quality affordable
homes in line with the national housing policy. |
