Bangladeshi worker Habib landed at KLIA at 5.30am on Friday, more than seven hours behind schedule after “immigration issues” at Dhaka airport delayed his flight.
The 28-year-old told CNA he was grateful to have made it to Malaysia before the deadline, saying the immigration process was “fast”.
“I couldn’t come earlier because the flights were full, even though I already paid to come here,” he said.
He previously worked in Malaysia for seven years but was forced to return to Bangladesh in 2020 after his contract ended and the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
Mr Habib acted as interpreter for a group of 15 countrymen – all wearing white caps – who had arrived with him. They were waiting for a bus to take them to Penang, where Mr Habib will work in the textile industry for RM1,500 (US$318.60) a month.
He has “many” friends in Bangladesh who have already obtained visas to work in Malaysia but have yet to fly over, he said.
“If they can’t come in, and they have already paid for it, will they get their money back?” he asked. “I feel lucky (about my situation), thank God.”
Bangladeshi news website Kaler Kontho reported on Friday that recruitment agencies in the country had urged the Malaysian government to extend the deadline for Bangladesh nationals who had already been approved to work in Malaysia.
The Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (BAIRA) told the publication more than 30,000 workers from the country had obtained approval to work in Malaysia but were unable to make it by May 31.
“We have held several meetings with the (relevant Bangladeshi) ministry in this regard. We talked about extending the time by one or two months. Then all the workers could have been sent,” BAIRA was quoted as saying.
“Because if the workers can’t go, they will suffer financial losses.”
The association last year estimated that each worker pays up to RM20,000 to multiple players in the recruitment process.
Malaysian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Haznah Md Hashim said at a press briefing in Dhaka on Wednesday that the Malaysian government had set the May 31 deadline for national and border security reasons.
“It is an open secret that there are quite a number of illegal (migrants) in Malaysia. I am not referring only to Bangladesh but from all 15 source countries,” she said, adding that the government will deal with the matter “internally” after the deadline has passed.
When asked about recruitment syndicates, Mdm Haznah said the Malaysian government was trying its best to ensure that recruitment of foreign workers is done ethically and transparently.
“(But) there are things … beyond the control of the two governments (of Malaysia and Bangladesh),” she stated.
