ALOR GAJAH, May 29 — The Public Works Department (JKR) will vet contractors who want to be involved in the construction of health facilities to avoid ‘sick’ projects, said Deputy Works Minister Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Mohamad.

He said that there are currently 166 projects related to the construction of health facilities, but 24 of them have been delayed due to the majority of the contractors involved not having experience in this area.

"Of the 24 contractors undertaking the ‘sick’ projects, 22 of them were found to have no experience in such construction, hence the step taken by JKR is to vet contractors after this.

"Contractors who will be involved in the construction of health facilities must have experience in the construction of such facilities after this,” he said.

He said this to reporters after officiating the five-day Health Contractor Competency Course starting today which was also attended by Deputy Health Minister Lukanisman Awang Sauni at the Centre for Engineering and Technology Excellence (CREaTE) in Simpang Ampat here.

Commenting further, Abdul Rahman said his ministry took the step to implement the course so that contractors who want to be involved in the construction of these facilities get the appropriate knowledge before bidding for tenders for the related projects. — Bernama