Adopt good practices to impact communities, councils advised
MIRI: Local councils need to adopt good practices towards developing more effective operating framework that would enhance their roles and increase engagement with the local communities.
In pointing this out, Minister of Local Government and Housing Dato Sri Dr Sim Kui Hian said in view of their position as the third-tier government, local councils should be the ones to ensure that the government’s administration would continue to function under difficult circumstances, such as the present Covid-19 situation.
“As the systems and SOPs (standard operating procedures) set by the SDMC (State Disaster Management Committee) address every new circumstance during the recovery phase, and the country set to transition into the endemic phase, some aspects of the SOPs outlined by the health authorities and local councils could collectively become a permanent feature in our day-today living – these aspects include conducting self-tests and other methodologies.
“This also calls for effective dissemination of information to the local communities,” said Dr Sim, adding that there might be a need for the local authorities to come up with new regulations to enforce and secure a change of behaviour in the public realm.
In this respect, he pointed out the need to capitalise on the various learning resources that had been made available because of the pandemic.
“Sharing of resources, procedures and information is essential as the virus does not respect the rules and boundaries of different agencies,” said Dr Sim in his speech for the Service Excellence Awards (APC) ceremony held at Pullman Miri Waterfront Hotel yesterday.
Adding on, Dr Sim said with Phase 4 of the National Recovery Plan (NRP) approaching, the onus would be on local governments to become the source of information for the communities regarding any change in policy directions or revision in the ‘Key Strategic Indicators’.
The event highlighted the outstanding performance of 159 civil service personnel representing various government departments and agencies including Miri City Council (MCC), as well as the Housing Development Corporation (HDC) and the Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID) units in the central and northern zones, throughout last year.