KUALA LUMPUR: The government must quickly respond to the planned closure of Goodyear's manufacturing plant in Shah Alam, said former international trade and industry minister Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz.
"It was an unexpected shock to read in the media about Goodyear, a long-time entity in the industrial sector, deciding to close its operations in Malaysia. This prompts us to pause and understand the reasons behind it.
"The government must quickly respond to such developments. While touting around the billions of possible investments, expectations, being mooted and discussed, it is so important that industrial and business entities, which are already here, do not close shop... and leave for other countries," she said in a posting on her Facebook page, 'Rafidah Aziz Malaysian Citizen', today.
Rafidah's statement followed the announcement by Goodyear's Asia Pacific president, Nathaniel Madarang, that it would shut down its factory in Shah Alam from June 30.
In her post, Rafidah said Malaysia should never rely upon the memorandums of understanding (MoUs).
"Instead, we must ensure that there is actually a serious memorandum of undertaking, that entails details such as the location of the projects, structure of the workforce, on product whether it is export oriented or/ and for domestic market, expected sales and any joint ventures with the locals mooted among others.
"Only then can any memorandum of undertaking be accepted and signed, especially when the prime minister or minister is the witness," she said.
In the post, Rafidah also called on the government to get the full facts on how many companies have shut down their operations in Malaysia, the reason behind it, as well as where their new location would be.
"Analyse what were the push factors that drove them to shut down, and, to add insult to injury, re-located elsewhere."
She said the push factors can also be damning illustrations of the investors that are currently operating in Malaysia.
"There must be a serious and detailed analysis of the push and pull factors... and a bird in hand is worth more than two that are still 'flying around surveying' where to build their nest.
"Gloating over billions yet unconfirmed, is just to be in that situation of 'shiok sendiri'. After all, investors will not ever say that they will not invest in Malaysia, especially when at meetings with the prime minister or ministers.
"We must strive to make Malaysia the location of choice for investors, both domestic and foreign."
