The Malaysian Associated Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (MAICCI) has vowed to champion the cause of local Indian traders who claim to have lost business to international trade fairs backed by the government.

eswaran maicci 23_01_2009 Calling on the government to halt these fairs, MAICCI said its president KK Eswaran ( left ) had raised the matter with Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak.

He also met with Domestic trade, Co-operatives and Consumerism Minister Hasan Malek on Monday.

    

"During festive seasons, it is the time for legitimate businesses and traders to conduct good businesses throughout the country and such trade fairs are depleting their businesses," said MAICCI in a statement.

The chambers said it supported and endorsed the protest by the Indian traders, who recently took to the streets in Penang and Kuala Lumpur when their requests for the fairs to be banned fell on deaf ears.

If MAICCI had its way, the ban could affect the upcoming Penang Global Indian Festival 2013 at the Subterranean Penang International Convention and Exhibition Centre (Spice) from Aug 7 to Aug 11.

The government had said that the international carnivals were aimed at boosting trade with foreign countries such as Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia and Pakistan.

MAICCI however argued that the fairs, organised by an event company working with the Malaysia–India Chamber of Commerce (Maicom), had a "hidden agenda" to grab local businesses and not promote trade, as products were often sold far too cheaply.

Local businesses with fixed-costs such as shop rental and taxes could not compete with these fly-by-night, unregistered foreign traders, they said.

"The consumers are also directly being cheated with many sub-standard and defected goods that are unnoticeable. The traders at the carnival are not obliged to warranty and replacement as usually after the carnival they either return to their countries or become untraceable," MAICCI noted.