Creating a leaner civil service
I REFER to the report “Getting help from the civil service” ( The Star, Nov 27) on the Prime Minister’s two meetings with senior civil servants.
Any government can only function effectively and achieve its stated objectives with the cooperation and support of the civil service establishment. In the case of Malaysia, the country’s two premier services, the Administrative and Diplomatic Service (PTD) and Judicial and Legal Service (JLS) are especially important in elevating and powering the nation to a higher scale of unity, efficiency, development, technocracy and prosperity. It is noted that the senior officials who met the Prime Minister pledged their commitment to full integrity, good governance and human capital development. I trust they will be loyal to the government as well and respect the provisions in our Constitution.
We must welcome their commitment. These very senior officials should also review the need for their own special officers to assist them because much good talent is being wasted on just waiting on their superiors.
It must be acknowledged that many challenges confronting the government and civil service are affected by legacy issues. The country has inherited a highly top-heavy system which will continue to strain the government’s resources. It is well known that senior officers were promoted to the highest grades on a personal-to-holder basis by a now discredited political leader.
These promotions have serious repercussions on the country’s budgetary resources and morale of the entire civil service.
In addition to these politically inspired promotion exercises, the previous government also hired at least one foreign national to handle public relations and others to run key units in the PM’s Department.
The appointment of these additional non-PTD and non-JLS officers was unwarranted.
The PTD itself has grown into a humongous behemoth of 10,000 officers. At independence in 1957, there were 360 officers consisting of 220 expatriates and 140 Malaysians, according to an authoritative study by Robert O. Tilman published in Wang Gungwu’s (editor) book, Malaysia, A Survey (1964).
Our population has only increased by about five times since 1957 while our gross national income (GNI) has grown but not by the multiple the PTD has expanded. As the successor of the prestigious Malayan Civil Service, the PTD must take a hard look at the amount of mandatory public expenditure being set aside for salaries and pensions just for this service. If a review is done, some officers from Wisma Putra should be included as our Foreign Service has managed its PTD establishment rather well in servicing more than a hundred diplomatic and consular missions with a relatively lean service.
The Public Service Department’s role in expanding the PTD exponentially must also be scrutinised as many of their human resources development responsibilities can be delegated and handled with expertise by the relevant ministries and central agencies.
Another central agency also seems to monopolise the ICT functions of the entire country. This responsibility should be delegated to the ministry with responsibility for our policy on multimedia operations.
The current government needs the support and understanding of the entire government and semi-government establishments to make a success of its governance, especially in addressing rising inequality and managing our resources, finances, education, health, environment and energy needs.
M. SANTHANANABAN Kajang