Construction industry players have been put on notice: the Malaysian Competition Commission knows what you are doing, and it has the tools to prove it.
Its chief executive officer, Datuk Iskandar Ismail, said the commission has worked closely with the Construction Industry Development Board, providing advocacy to its licence holders.
"We went across Malaysia, giving talks to these players. Basically, between the lines, we told them: we know what you are doing, so be careful."
— Datuk Iskandar Ismail, MyCC CEO, to SAYSHe added that the meetings were held between 2023 and 2024.
Iskandar says MyCC has already conducted advocacy sessions with CIDB licence holders across Malaysia. · Image via SAYS
Iskandar said proxy activity is not hard to detect when enforcement agencies can compare records from bodies such as the Companies Commission of Malaysia and the National Registration Department.
"We have software and systems that allow us access to data even from government agencies, so we can detect if individuals involved may know each other or have worked together before."
— Datuk Iskandar Ismail, MyCC CEO, to SAYSHe said the commission can look beyond obvious direct links and build a much wider picture of relationships between parties.
"Or, for example, if they share similar bin and binti names — even if they don't, but are distant relatives, we can still map their family trees. So if the crooks think they are clever, we are clever too."
— Datuk Iskandar Ismail, MyCC CEO, to SAYSIskandar acknowledged that investigations can take time, and said some people may not even realise that what they are doing breaches competition rules.
"Some people genuinely don't know that what they are doing is wrong because the law only came into effect in 2012. It takes years to break a norm, which is why we focus on advocacy, advising people, and using many other methods to deter involvement in unfair competition practices."
— Datuk Iskandar Ismail, MyCC CEO, to SAYS
