Govt may terminate contract of court cleaning firm

KUALA LUMPUR: The Prime Minister’s Department will take stern action, including the possibility of terminating the contract of a firm which supplies more than 100 cleaners to the Kuala Lumpur Courts Complex here, after it failed to maintain cleanliness in the complex.

Minister Datuk Liew Vui Keong said the contractor had not been performing well and did not supply sufficient workers as per the contract.

“The contract requires them to supply 120 workers to clean up the whole building. But by July 1 this year, only half of the cleaners were provided.

“The number of workers kept going down. On certain days, the contractor provided only seven workers and sometimes no workers at all despite payments already made.

“I find this to be completely unacceptable as there is a fundamental breach of terms and conditions of the contract.

“I believe stern action must be taken against the contractor for not keeping up with the obligation, which we have been seeing for the last few weeks,” he said.

When asked if all of the cleaners came to work yesterday, Liew said about one-third came to work.

Liew said he also noticed that the air-conditioning in 84 courts was not functioning due to a centralised system problem, adding it was not sufficient to cater for the judges, lawyers, litigants and even the public.

“I think this is not healthy and not conducive for the court to function and remedial measures must be taken. I have instructed the Palace of Justice’s management in Putrajaya to give proper mobile air-conditioning as soon as possible to the critical courts.

“I do not want the judges to have to sit in a hot and stuffy room,” he said.

Liew spoke to the media after a walkabout at the complex accompanied by his deputy Hanipa Maidin, Chief Justice Tan Sri Richard Malanjum, Chief Judge of Malaya Tan Sri Zaharah Ibrahim and Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Datuk David Wong Dak Wah.

On Sunday, Justice Malanjun had called for a gotong-royong after the court was found to be in a bad condition as the cleaners were said to be staging a strike over unpaid wages. The gotong-royong saw about 200 staff come together to clean up the complex.

He also said there were a structural problems where there were cracks and leakage and it was very serious.

“I do not want a major disaster to happen. I have also instructed the Palace of Justice management to provide a report to be submitted to the Cabinet,” he said.