Voon Shiak Ni
KUCHING: Withholding the ATM cards of borrowers is not stipulated for in the regulations of the Money Lenders Act and it is against the interest of the borrowers.
Special Officer to Ministry of Housing and local government for Sarawak Voon Shiak Ni said this when urging licensed money lenders to oblige by the Money Lenders Act 1951 in conducting their business.
Voon was responding to a public complainant that a money lender had kept her ATM card and that her card will only be given back to her after she paid up all her loan amount with the money lender.
The money lending licensing is under the purview of the Federal Ministry of the Housing and Local government .
“Under Section 9A of the Act, the licence can be revoked or suspended if the licensee carried out his business in a manner which is detrimental to the interest of the borrower and or contravened any provisions regulations and rules of the said Act.”
Voon said the Police may arrest without warrant any person who commits or attempts to commit any offence under this Act .
“However I did call up and talked to some licensed money lenders to hear their side of the story. I was given to understand that money lenders faces the challenges in recovering their money borrowed to borrowers and that roughly four out of 10 borrowers default in paying up their loans,” said Voon.
“We will try to have some discussions with the stakeholders and to get feedbacks to see if we can come up with some good solutions so that the trade of money lending can be more people friendly and at the same time, borrowers also need to understand the responsibility to pay what is due to avoid being blacklisted in CTOS.”
“Whatever it is I want to advise everyone to spend within means and that resorting to money lenders for financial solutions is always not a good option.”