KUCHING: The Sarawak government should liberalise the importation of cement from overseas, says DAP Sarawak chairman Chong Chieng Jen.
In proposing this, Chong said the proposed move by the state government in allowing only the joint venture companies of SEDC (Sarawak Economic Development Corporation) and BDA (Bintulu Development Authority) to import cement from Thailand may partially resolve the cement shortage problem but it also creates the additional ‘middleman’ costs to the local contractor.
“While this proposed JV company makes profits from the importation of cement, such profit will be passed on to the local contractors as additional costs,” he said in a statement today.
He added that the role of government agencies such as SEDC and BDA is to facilitate economic activities and growth, not to add on to the costs of business operation and construction of local contractors.
“Therefore, DAP Sarawak proposes that the state government should liberalise the importation of cement, allowing any of those involved in the construction sector to directly import cement from overseas, not only Thailand, but any country which has cheaper quality cement.
“For that, there should not be too much bureaucracy and red-tape in the import process.”
