It’s not a good day for Utusan Malaysia employees, as they were told to stop work, and were given a few hours to return all company property.

In a memo, Utusan Melayu (Malaysia) Bhd executive chairperson Abdul Aziz Sheikh Fadzir said the company was no longer solvent despite several attempts to salvage the 80-year-old business.

Utusan’s collapse comes less than two months after it raised prices for its printed newspapers in a bid to cover operational costs. At the time, its former owner Umno injected RM1.6 million to help pay overdue salaries following a staff picket. And even Umno can’t do much now.