SHAH ALAM: Companies appointed for motor vehicle inspection services are not allowed to open inspection centres exclusively in profitable areas, says Anthony Loke.
The Transport Minister said companies had been informed of this in briefings before they were given their Motor Vehicle Inspection Service (PPKM) appointment letters.
“We made it clear to these companies that they cannot set up their centres in heavy traffic and highly profitable areas only.
“They were told that if they wanted to open up one centre in a populated area like Selangor, they must also open another in a rural area in either Pahang or Johor.
“This would ensure that substantial profits earned from those populated areas would be used to subsidise their centres in rural areas,” he told reporters after officiating the groundbreaking ceremony for a new private logistics hub yesterday.
Loke also dismissed concerns surrounding the qualifications of the three companies recently given the PPKM appointment letters.
He pointed out that no other company in Malaysia could have had a car inspection qualification other than Computerised Vehicle Inspection Centre (Puspakom) due to its three-decade-long monopoly.
“How can there be other companies in Malaysia with experience in vehicle inspections if it had been monopolised by Puspakom for so long?
“No one was asking this same question when Puspakom was first given the concession, so it doesn’t make sense to ask it now,” he said.
Loke added that as long as the company applying for a licence to provide vehicle inspection services was a registered one, it was not illegal.
“There is no contract, the government is not paying anything for these companies to build their facilities, it is all coming from their private investments,” he said.
On Feb 7, Loke announced that three companies had received the letter of appointment namely Wawasan Bintang Sdn Bhd, Pakatan Petroleum Sdn Bhd and Beriman Gold Sdn Bhd.
The companies have been given 24 months to complete infrastructure requirements and relevant authority approvals, failing which their appointments would be revoked.
Upon meeting all requirements, Loke said the companies would be granted a 10-year licence which would have to be renewed annually.
