Shortly after awarding the foreign worker permit renewal to MyEG Services Berhad, more questions are being directed at the government for apparently outsourcing the management of a centralised foreign worker system to another private company, Bestinet Sdn Bhd.

PKR today demanded to know the process behind the government's decision to allow Bestinet to develop and manage the Foreign Workers Centralised Management System (FWCMS), which means all one-stop foreign worker documentations, including medical records and visa with referrals, must be done online through the website.

An announcement on the FWCMS website states that it is mandatory for all foreign worker employers to use the portal as a one-stop centre beginning Jan 15, two days ago.

PKR Youth information chief and Semambu assemblyperson Lee Chean Chung ( left ) today questioned the value of the contract given to Bestinet and whether this move, just like the MyEG outsourcing, would end up with employers incurring more costs.

"This comprehensive system definitely involves a huge development cost. A private company would not provide such a service for free," he noted.

Lee also expressed concern  that this move could affect the security and sovereignty of the country.

“At least with MyEG it is merely renewals. But the information contained in these systems are related to border control and immigration,” he said.

“These are sensitive information,” he added.

Even temporary working pass, electronic check-out memo, e-Enforcement, and e-Embassy, and foreign worker insurance management are handled through the portal, he noted.