By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, July 5: Complaints related to online scams and loan sharks received by the Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) Public Complaints Office increased by 40 per cent in the first half of this year compared to the corresponding period in 2025.
In a statement, its boss Milton Foo said many victims were small business owners from Kuching, Sarikei, Sibu, Bintulu and Miri who turned to illegal moneylenders or online moneylenders due to cash flow problems, only to fall further into debt and intimidation.
He urged the public not to trust loan or investment advertisements circulating on social media, warning that scam syndicates would stop at nothing to deceive victims.
“Scam syndicates do not talk about rationality, law or reason. Their only goal is to deceive you in every way, and they will continue to use threats, intimidation, arson, kidnappings and other illegal means to achieve this,” he said.
He said this after an experience-sharing session at SUPP headquarters yesterday (July 4), during which Datuk Seri Michael Chong Ten Soo shared his 38 years of experience in handling loan shark and scam cases.
During the session, Chong advised victims of loan shark harassment to act quickly by filing a police report, notifying the complaints office and alerting the media, saying delays would only worsen the situation as interest would continue to accrue as fear increased.
Regarding online scams, he urged victims to immediately stop all communication with scammers, preserve transaction logs and chat histories, and report the incident to the police as well as the National Scam Response Center (NSRC) by calling 997.
Chong also emphasized that media exposure could play an important role in resolving public grievances, citing past cases where public pressure helped force parties to fulfill their obligations and deliver justice to victims.
Foo described Chong as a respected public complaints advocate whose commitment to helping victims had benefited Malaysians for more than three decades.
He said the office would continue to strengthen its efforts to educate the public about scams and illegal money lending while working closely with authorities to help victims. — Daily Dayak
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