PETALING JAYA: The security services industry has been badly affected by the Nepalese government’s decision to bar their migrant workers from working in Malaysia.

Security Services Association of Malaysia president Datuk Seri Mustapa Ali told The Star that the Nepalese government’s decision had led to more than 5,000 vacancies in the industry.

He said the industry had been severely affected, and appealed to the Malaysian government to seriously look into the matter.

“Malaysia has a policy that only Nepalese can be hired as foreign security guards, and that is the reason why the demand for the Nepalese guards is high from multinational companies,” he said.

He said the association’s members were facing a tough time filling up the vacancies which included new postings and replacements for those whose tenure had ended.

“The security companies have been left in the lurch as they are unable to supply guards despite signing contracts with the employers.

“Some of these contracts have been terminated,” he said, adding that the situation had resulted in loss of income for a number of the association’s members.

Mustapa said there were also cases where the security companies were unable to supply guards even after obtaining approval from the Home Ministry.

He said the approvals meant nothing because the Nepalese government had stopped their citizens from working in Malaysia.

Mustapa said the security industry had been affected, but he understood why the Nepalese government was taking the drastic action.

“They feel their workers, who come from poor backgrounds, are being exploited into paying a lot of money to a private company.

“We wish to appeal to the Malaysian government to quickly resolve the issue before the situation turns from bad to worse,” he said.