COMMENT | Five years ago, I wrote about a racket in which middlepersons appointed by the Home Ministry were milking off millions to “process” visa applications of workers coming to Malaysia. At that time, there were far too many “untouchables” in the civil service. The silence was deafening and the follies of the perpetrators may soon be heard in open court.

Previously, foreign workers or their agents could submit their applications directly to foreign missions and pay RM15 for processing. However, this inimitable ruling, which came into force in November 2014, required applicants of the foreign landing visa (VLN) to submit their forms to a one-stop centre (OSC). On top of that, another company has been appointed to carry out "immigration security clearance" (ISC) checks.

The ISC company is allowed to charge RM105 or its equivalent.

The company is supposed to identify applicants who have been blacklisted from entering the country. Payment to OSC was fixed at RM100 and charge for "VLN services" set at RM105. These additional expenses would have to be borne by employers although it was then not known how these companies were appointed.

At an estimate of 150,000 workers from Indonesia annually, intermediaries were pocketing RM61.5 million from the workers – not a sen went to the government. The Immigration Department only charged a prescribed fee – an annual levy of RM2,129.16 (including service charges) for workers in manufacturing and construction industries while estates and the agriculture sector workers paid RM818.33.

However, the current issue that the world’s leading glove manufacturer – Top Glove Corporation Bhd – is facing has little to do with the levy or the “gatekeepers’ fees”, but with recruitment fees which...