To close or not to close

MIRI: The government will make a decision on the Kedai Rakyat 1Malaysia (KR1M) in Engkilili— which closed down early last month—probably by the end of this year.

Deputy Minister of Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism (KPDNKK) Datuk Henry Sum Agong said of the 33 KR1Ms across the state, only the one in Engkilili faced problems.

This retail outlet was forced to close shop as sales were poor and rental of the premises too high, and not as speculated in the social media that it was short of goods to sell, he added.

“KR1M in Engkilili was closed because there were problems we could not avoid,” Henry told reporters covering his visit to Krokop 10 Market yesterday.

“We have deployed a team to survey the situation in Engkilili and Lubok Antu, too. Hopefully, we can resolve this issue by the end of this year.”

On the two KR1Ms in Pujut Adong and Emart Tudan here, Lawas MP Henry said both joints were doing well.

On border smuggling, he admitted there was such a problem, but finding solutions to it would involve two governments, each with their own set of laws.

“On our (Malaysia) part, we view this matter seriously, particularly those that involve controlled or subsidised items,” he said.

“If need be, we will employ more men under contract to carry out enforcement duties.”

On his visit to Krokop 10 Market, he said he was happy the amount of vegetables, poultry, marine products and other grocery items were adequate and reasonably priced.

Accompanying Henry was the ministry’s state deputy director Abdul Hafidz Rahim.