Many rental vehicles used in Langkawi are unlicensed

MORE than 1,000 unlicensed rental vehicles, especially cars, are apparently being used in tourist hotspot Langkawi, reported Harian Metro.

Besides being operated illegally, the vehicles are also not well maintained and those who rent them are expected to solve their own problems should they break down or get into an accident.

A survey by the Malay daily showed there were eight warehouses, with each containing between 100 and 300 unlicensed vehicles, at a village near one of the jetties on the island.

The warehouses are highly guarded.

When a reporter tried to get near the warehouses, he was tailed for over 1km by a group of motorcyclists before managing to slip away.

According to sources, local residents are trying to make easy money from the business.

“The owners hand the vehicles over to touts, who will arrange everything for a 30% to 50% cut.

“Some get RM10 per day for every vehicle that is successfully rented out. Every tout manages around 20 vehicles while some have up to 100,” said the sources.

Road Transport Department senior enforcement director Muhammad Kifli Ma Hassan said the activities were under its “radar” and action would be taken soon.

> The daily also reported that singer Datuk Jamal Abdillah lost RM2mil after a company he invested in failed to pay him dividends and return his capital.

The 65-year-old, who will soon be welcoming his seventh child with his 28-year-old wife, said he had lodged a police report.

“Before I invested, I checked with both the Securities Commission and Bank Negara and found that there was such a company. Many of those who invested expected a 8% to 12% dividend,” he said.

Jamal said although he was paid dividends for the first three years, the company did not pay dividend for the fourth year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

“But until now, they have yet to pay up,” he said, urging authorities to take action.

> Actor Shukri Yahaya (pic) is reluctant to act in intimate scenes following harsh criticisms over similar sequences in the drama Layang-Layang Perkahwinan, according to Kosmo!.

Shukri, whose full name is Mohd Shukri Yahaya, 36, said although he was unaffected by the netizens’ criticisms, he wanted to safeguard his relationship with his wife and family by avoiding such scenes in the future.

“At that time, I didn’t think about the impact. Actually, I don’t really care but the netizens left comments on social media. Even now, they are still leaving such comments,” he said.

Mohd Shukri said he now makes it a point to keep his distance from other actors, especially when the scene takes place on the bed.

“If the actress is under the bed covers, I will mind my distance,” he said.

● The above article is compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with this ' >'sign, it denotes a separate news item.