KUALA LUMPUR: Foreigners from various countries have chosen at least 30 locations across the Klang Valley to live and set up businesses.
The Klang Valley, renowned for its rapid development and business activities, has become their primary attraction for its numerous job opportunities, especially in the construction, services, and cleaning sectors.
Nevertheless, the surge in the population of foreignners significantly affects local residents when they initiate the formation of colonies and assert dominance in specific areas.
This trend has led to growing unease among the public, Berita Harian reported.
The largest group of foreigners in the country, Indonesians, are scattered across the Klang Valley, with the majority in the central areas of Kuala Lumpur, Sungai Buloh, Ampang, Selayang, Shah Alam, Kajang, Rawang, Gombak, Puchong, and Klang.
The Bangladeshi community are more prominent in Lebuh Ampang, Bukit Bintang, and Cheras Baru, while Rohingya refugees are concentrated in Ampang, Gombak, and Seri Kembangan.
Not only do these foreigners engage in business, but they also establish their own amenities such as mosques, grocery stores, eateries, and schools, proving their long-standing presence in Malaysia.
Selayang, for instance, has been ‘dominated’ by Rohingya for quite some time, while Chinese and Korean nationals consider several locations in Ampang, Cheras, and Kuchai Lama as their hub.
Pakistanis, on the other hand, prefer Cheras, Puchong, Shah Alam, Seri Kembangan, Nilai, and Dengkil, with most of them running their own businesses.
Over the past decade, an increasing number of residents from India, Nepal, the Arab region, and Africa have also settled in the Klang Valley.
Without continuous and comprehensive enforcement action by authorities, these groups begin to ‘proliferate’ and grow, strengthening their communities to the concern of the locals.
Observers believe that the issue of undocumented foreign arrivals will not end without effective and sustained countermeasures by the authorities.
The Immigration Department recognises the need to meet demands in the job sector, especially in construction and services, as one of the factors attracting foreigners to the Klang Valley.
Kuala Lumpur Immigration Department director Syamsul Badrin Mohshin said the high demand for foreign labour in the capital city leads many employers to hire from this group.
“The issue in Kuala Lumpur is that people see a large number of foreigners. We often receive complaints about the flood of these groups, but upon inspection, we find that most of them have valid documents.
“The public’s perception, upon seeing foreign residents, is that they are undocumented immigrants and they start accusing authorities such as Immigration, the police, and Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) of not doing their job.
“However, the reality is that the foreigners we see may not necessarily be illegal immigrants. For example, recently, we conducted checks at Puduraya and apprehended many foreigners, but we released them because they had valid documents and work permits,” he said.
Syamsul Badri said his department takes the issue of the influx of foreigners in the capital city seriously and continuously conducts operations to identify foreigners staying in the country illegally.
“For this purpose, we always carry out operations and raids, even integrated operations with other agencies such as DBKL and the police, where all parties cooperate and exchange information.
– NSTP
