‘Ah Longs’ recruit teenager as runners for RM50

SHAH ALAM - Hiring teenagers as runners for RM50 to install illegal loan advertisements is one of the tactics of unlicenced or ‘ah long’ loan companies detected by Shah Alam City Council (MBSA).

The modus operandi was found when the trend of putting up illegal advertisements increased after the Movement Control Order (MCO) last Covid-19.

MBSA enforcement department director Sahrul Nizam Ahmad said that taking down illegal advertisements was one of the duties of the local authority.

Sahrul Nizam - Sinar Harian/ROSLI TALIB

According to him, there were several focus areas where advertisements were actively placed ahead of festival seasons such as Christmas, Chinese New Year, Deepavali and Eid.

"These loan companies allegedly hire teenagers for as low as RM50 depending on the number of advertisements installed and the area.

"Based on the interrogations of the teenagers detained, they claimed that they did not know who the mastermind was and were only paid to do the job.

"Usually, this installation of illegal advertisements is done individually or by two people in a car," he told Sinar Harian exclusively.

MBSA had to bear the cost of cleaning up illegal ads.

He said the local council believed that the wages given also differed depending on the company.

He said that initial interrogations also found that illegal advertisements were actively installed from midnight to early morning.

"There were also locations that had been cleaned, but two days later, we found ads put up again and we believe that these folks do not find it a waste.

"That's why they dare to hire school leavers who want extra money to do this illegal work," he said.

Sahrul said that illegal advertisements would usually be placed on lampposts and trees owned by residents and the local authority.

"We believe that illegal advertisements on loans from along involve gangsters," he revealed.

MBSA enforcers taking down illegal advertisements at a location under the supervision of local authority (PBT).

He shared that besides ‘ah long’ loans, MBSA also found advertisements related to housing, business products, wedding ceremony directions and massage services.

"When we say massage parlour, there is bound to be a negative perspective because it hides behind a traditional name and reflexology.

"However, in Shah Alam, massage premises are highly controlled because we cooperate with the police and the Malaysian Immigration Department (JIM) to take down premises that provide the service without approval including ones that offer immoral activities.

"In Shah Alam, illegal advertisements are mostly related to ‘ah long’," he said.

In 2022, a total of 918 operations were carried out by MBSA with 31,912 illegal advertisements being taken down.

MBSA had taken down 48,852 illegal ads of which mostly belong to the loan sharks.

Commenting on the concentration of illegal advertisement installation in Shah Alam, Sahrul noted that it focused on areas with the majority of residents of low and middle-income groups besides factory and industrial areas.

"MBSA enforcement members will continue to carry out operations to take down illegal advertisements every day. Before carrying out other tasks, at least one hour would be allocated to take down advertisements according to areas," he said.

He said that MBSA had taken down 48,852 illegal advertisements from last year to this year.

"For 2022, a total of 918 operations were carried out with 31,912 illegal advertisements removed while this year, for the six-month period starting in January, there were 512 operations with 16,940 illegal advertisements removed.

"In 2020, the most found were ‘ah long’ ads with a total of 24,379 ads while this year as of June, there were 11,783 ads," he said.

Advertisements on housing were also among the ones found illegally put up.

He revealed that investigations found that phone numbers displayed in advertisements use other people's names.

"We think that these companies use someone else's identity card number to be registered on the phone number to make it difficult for the authorities to track down the mastermind," he said.

Sahrul said that there were numerous negative impacts of illegal advertisements such as road accidents if they come off and fall on the road.

In fact, it would also affect the lives of those who were deceived by the offer from ‘ah long’ if the loan failed to be settled.

"Besides that, MBSA's image would also be jeopardised and we will have to bear the cost pay to clean up the mess," he said.

According to him, MBSA would carry out a special operation with the police against illegal advertising.

He explained that MBSA welcomes residents' complaints through the Local Authority Public Complaint Management System (SISPAA-PBT) and the Resident Representative Council (MPP).