Guan Eng-SDO spat a test of civil service impartiality
Posted by Kit in Lim Guan Eng, public service on Tuesday, 27 July 2010, 9:16 am
Malaysian Insider
By Yoges Palaniappan
July 26, 2010
GEORGE TOWN, July 26 – Lim Guan Eng and state development officer (SDO) Nik Ali Nik Yunus’s running feud highlights widespread misunderstanding over the different roles of the civil service and political parties, political analysts said today.
Universiti Malaya Law Faculty associate professor Azmi Sharom and political analyst Wong Chin Huat backed the Penang chief minister’s criticism against Nik Ali, despite the stout defence of the federal employee put up by Chief Secretary Tan Sri Mohd Sidek Hassan.
They were of the opinion that the civil service needed to understand the distinction between political parties and government.
Azmi and Wong were commenting on the ongoing clash between Lim (pic) and Nik Ali which had escalated following a recent outburst by the federal civil servant, who said Lim had lowered his own status of a chief minister by criticising a SDO. Read the rest of this entry »
Civility in the US, vitriol in Penang
Posted by Kit in DAP, Lim Guan Eng, public service on Tuesday, 27 July 2010, 1:06 am
Making Sens
By Tan Siok Choo
26th July 2010
A CIVIL servant makes a speech. Heavily edited and later publicised, the speech makes the speaker appear racially biased. Journalists and politicians suggest the civil servant should be sacked. After the civil servant resigns, the full speech is published showing its theme of racial reconciliation had been turned into a racist rant.
This incident happened not in Penang but in the US. Nevertheless, last week’s fiasco involving Shirley Sherrod, state director of rural development in Georgia, provides a useful counterpoint to the spat between Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng and State Development Officer (SDO) Nik Ali Mat Yunus.
In the US, Sherrod’s speech was edited by a conservative group to suggest she had discriminated against a white farmer. Last Monday, Fox News Channel aired the edited excerpt and host Bill O’Reilly called for Sherrod’s resignation. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack obliged and asked Sherrod to leave.
However, the unedited version of Sherrod’s speech showed the black civil servant had helped the white farmer and was recounting the experience to illustrate that race should never be considered in dealings with others.
Thereafter, President Barack Obama telephoned the US Agriculture Department employee to express his regret over her forced resignation while Vilsack offered Sherrod his apologies and a unique new position in the department.
In contrast to the furore in Penang, one aspect of the Sherrod imbroglio stands out. Although the exchanges in the US were heated, they were civilised. Apart from labelling Sherrod a racist, name calling was notably absent. This contrasts with the volleys of verbal vitriol in Penang between Nik Ali and Guan Eng.
This prompts several questions: Is civility now an endangered trait in Malaysia? Why isn’t it possible for two persons to disagree without being disgustingly disagreeable? Read the rest of this entry »
Discipline the Little Napoleans
Posted by Kit in Education, nation building, Religion on Monday, 26 July 2010, 11:50 pm
By Thomas Lee
MySinchew
26.7.10
It is indeed a relief that Deputy Prime Minister cum Education Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin has given an assurance that non-Mulsim religious clubs or societies are not banned in schools.
Muhyiddin has pledged that school clubs and societies related to non-Muslim activities that have been in operation for decades need not be disbanded.
He said the Education Ministry has not issued any directive for such clubs or societies to close.
If such is the case, then disciplinary action must be taken against the officials of the Selangor Education Department and certain school heads who have been flexing their muscles to curb religious activities by the non-Muslim students in the schools.
The recent case of the Klang High School being ordered to close its non-Muslim religious clubs is not an isolate case. Read the rest of this entry »
Scrap the 10-yr-old Education Ministry circular restricting formation of non-Muslim religious societies in schools – against 1Malaysia and NEM to educate a critical and creative generation of Malaysians
Posted by Kit in 1Malaysia, Education, nation building on Monday, 26 July 2010, 10:30 am
The 10-year-old Education Ministry circular restricting the formation of non-Muslim religious societies in schools is the best example of Little Napoleons running riot in the civil service working against the national interests of educating a critical and creative generation of Malaysians and harnessing the multi-racial, multi-religious and multi-cultural assets of plural Malaysia.
What is the use of boasting about Malaysia as a model of ethnic, cultural, religious and biological diversity and Malaysia’s rich and unique cultural heritage when restrictions continue to be in place affecting the formation of non-Muslim societies in schools?
The Cabinet on Wednesday should scrap the 10-year-old Education Ministry circular restricting the formation of non-Muslim religious societies in schools as it is against Prime Minister’s 1Malaysia slogan and policy and the New Economic Model objective to educate a critical, creative and innovative generation of Malaysians.
The Education Ministry circular dated 16th December 2000 stated that non-Muslim religious societies formed before 2000 need not have to be registered but remain as status quo. Those set up from 2000 onwards need approval by the registrar, which is the state education department director.
For ten years, the circular was used by Biro Tatanegara-trained Little Napoleons in the Education Ministry to discourage, hamper or downright disallow the formation of non-Muslim religious societies. Read the rest of this entry »
Chief Secretary Sidek’s “Mother Hen” Folly
Posted by Kit in Bakri Musa, public service on Monday, 26 July 2010, 7:35 am
By M. Bakri Musa
Chief Secretary Sidek Hassan did not acquit himself honorably in so quickly defending federal civil servant Nik Ali Yunus in his very public and ugly squabble with Penang’s Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng.
Sidek’s swift reaction reflects more of a “mother hen” instinct of protecting its brood rather than the cool considered judgment of the head of an organization of professionals, as our civil servants would like us to believe them to be.
A state development officer (Nik Ali’s designation) is pretty far down in the federal civil service scheme of things, yet Sidek felt compelled to intervene. He did, in a rash and clumsy manner. At the very least he should have sought the views of both sides before rendering judgment. That would have been the mark of a true professional; it would also the decent thing to do.
Read the rest of this entry »
FDI crashing because investors lost faith, says DAP
By Boo Su-Lyn | The Malaysian Insider
KUALA LUMPUR, July 25 — A lack of confidence in Malaysia’s economy has driven foreign direct investment (FDI) to our neighbours, leaving the once-roaring “Asian tiger” to compete with Indochina countries, the DAP said today.
The World Foreign Investment Report (WIR) 2010 released by the United Nations showed that FDI in Malaysia plunged 81 per cent last year, trailing behind countries like the Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia and Singapore.
“For the first time ever in history, Malaysia attracted less investment than the Philippines,” DAP national publicity secretary Tony Pua said in a statement today.
The Philippines attracted US$1.95 billion (RM6.24 billion) in FDI compared to Malaysia’s US$1.38 billion, while Singapore raked in the most — more than US$16 billion.
“Among Southeast Asian nations, we are now only attracting more FDI than Cambodia, Myanmar, Brunei, Laos and Timor-Leste,” added Pua.
Read the rest of this entry »
M’sia’s increasing unattractiveness is ‘karma’
By Joe Fernandez | Malaysiakini
Without getting into the kind of superstition and quackery that many Malaysians swear by most times, it’s safe to conclude that the chickens are coming home to roost.
The 10 percent economic growth rate envisaged this year for the country, if it’s not a flash-in-the-pan, reminds us of the phrase that there are lies, damn lies and statistics. Again, this is indeed the unpalatable fact that we have to deal with in the run-up to 2020 and its aftermath.
The federal government needs to start thinking from now how they are going to explain in ten years time why we have failed to reach developed nation status and a high income economy.
Read the rest of this entry »
Efforts to de-stabilise & sabotage Penang intensified – video
Posted by Kit in Lim Guan Eng, Penang Government, UMNO on Saturday, 24 July 2010, 10:15 am
Bad FDI news for Malaysia: Down by 81 percent in 2009
By Aidila Razak | Malaysiakini
A nosedive in foreign direct investments in Malaysia in 2009 follows a continued downward trend in FDI, increasingly overshadowed by regional players, noted a United Nations report.
According to the World Investment Report 2010 unveiled today, FDI plunged 81 percent from US$7.32 billion (RM23.47 billion*) in 2008 to just US$1.38 billion (RM4.43 billion) last year.
(*Calculated based on exchange rate of US$1 = RM3.20650)
The 2009 FDI is less than half of the annual average FDI inflow between 1995 to 2005, which encompasses the long recovery period following the 1997 economic crisis.
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Decline in moral accountability?
Posted by Kit in Penang Government, public service on Thursday, 22 July 2010, 7:20 pm
By Thomas Lee Seng Hock | Mysinchew
Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Mohd Sidek Hassan has made himself look very foolish by asking whether it is wrong for civil servants to attend functions held by Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng, as he is the DAP secretary-general.
Sidek is apparently trying to justify the presence and participation of Penang state development officer Nik Ali Mat Yunus at an Umno press conference, where the officer verbally lambasted Guan Eng and issued prepared press statements to criticize the chief minister.
I am simply amazed that the country’s top civil servant doesn’t even understand the simple basic difference between a government and a political entity, and respect the very important fundamental principle of impartiality and neutrality of the civil service.
Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia in the Era of Globalization #24
Posted by Kit in Bakri Musa, globalisation on Thursday, 22 July 2010, 11:36 am
By M. Bakri Musa
Chapter 4: Modern Model States
The Asian Miracle – South Korea (Con’td)
The Koreans were diligent learners; they bested the Japanese. The hard-working Japanese looked lazy in comparison to the maniacal Koreans, so complete and successful the emulation.
The headlong rush towards industrialization carried a heavy social toll. With resources diverted towards heavy industries and the military, precious little was left for social development. Housing prices hit the roof and prices of common consumer goods spiraled up. These social problems were compounded by Parks’ increasingly authoritarian rule and the menacing activities of his Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) that seemed to have learned only too well from the excesses of its American counterpart. Legitimate students’ and workers’ protests were brutally suppressed, turning their victims into martyrs.
Read the rest of this entry »
Chief Secretary Sidek himself guilty of being “excessive” in taking sides instead of reprimanding Nik Ali for doubly violating civil service code
Posted by Kit in Najib Razak, Penang Government, public service, UMNO on Thursday, 22 July 2010, 11:01 am
It was only on Tuesday that the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said that there is no place for little Napoleons in the public service who do not understand the importance of innovation if the Government Transformation Programme is to succeed.
It is regrettable however that when Little Napoleons rear their ugly heads, they are given full defence and support instead of being reprimanded and put in their proper place.
The latest example of support for Little Napoleons instead of smacking them down is the Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Mohd Sidek Hassan’s defence of the Penang State Development Officer Nik Ali Nik Yunus for the latter’s attack on the Penang Chief Minister, Lim Guan Eng. Sidek said Guan Eng’s allegations against Nik Ali was “excessive”.
It is Sidek who is guilty of being “excessive” in taking sides instead of reprimanding Nik Ali for doubly violating the civil service code of being strictly non-partisan, non-political and civil by appearing at an UMNO press conference to attack the Penang Chief Minister as “biadap” (insolent or uncivilized) and “dayus” (coward).
What is most shocking is that no Cabinet Minister appeared outraged and all seemed to have sanctioned the “Little Napoleonic” conduct of Nik Ali.
Read the rest of this entry »
Let’s make Malaysia Boleh a reality
By Lim Mun Fah | The Malaysian Insider
I was away from the country when the 10th Malaysia Plan (10MP) was unveiled. On my return, I took some time to study the document.
At the first look, the 10MP seems like an excellently packaged master plan with an ambitious magnificent vision for the nation.
An in-depth study of the documents, however, uncovered some fundamental flaws, the most glaring, perhaps, is the conspicuous retention and reiteration of certain racially exclusive policies and programmes.
Another unfortunate weakness is surely the lack of a determined and expeditious practical attempt to liberalise and promote a more open education environment, particularly for Chinese education.
The proposed move to gradually end the overseas scholarship scheme is a regrettable myopic policy, lacking foresight and pragmatic insight.
Read the rest of this entry »
Make public the specific proposals made by the Sabah Chief Minister’s Department Laboratory on the Management of Illegal Immigrants in Sabah
Posted by Kit in Muhyiddin Yassin, Sabah on Wednesday, 21 July 2010, 3:23 pm
New Straits Times today front-paged its exclusive story of 55 proposals by various government agencies in a laboratory to combat terrorism and reduce the high number of illegal immigrants in the country.
These 55 proposals are to tabled at the Cabinet Committee on Foreign Workers chaired by the Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin when it meets on August 2.
What has happened to the earlier Laboratory on the Management of Illegal Immigrants in Sabah formed under the Sabah Chief Minister’s Department a few months ago, which is to come up with a new strategy and specific proposals to end the long-standing problem of illegal immigrants in Sabah?
Sabah faces the worst problem of influx of illegal immigrants, causing the state’s population to explode from some 400,000 during the formation of Malaysia in 1963 to three to four million today – with over half of the population believed to be foreigners.
Read the rest of this entry »
A gross violation of the civil service code
Posted by Kit in Najib Razak, Penang Government, public service on Wednesday, 21 July 2010, 5:05 am
By Thomas Lee Seng Hock | Mysinchew
The current spat between Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng and the state development officer Nik Ali Mat Yunus highlights a fundamental flaw in the Malaysian civil service.
In the democratic system of government, of which Malaysia professes to practise, the civil service is a politically non-partisan and neutral body, with all its officers supposed to function and operate impartially in the implementations of the policies, programmes, and projects of the elected government.
Article 132 of the Federal Constitution states that federal civil servants hold office at the pleasure of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, and state civil servants at the pleasure of the respective Sultan. Which means that the civil servants are not beholden to any political party but to His Majesty’s government of the day. His Majestic is above politics, and so must all those civil servants appointed under his royal command and name.
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Malaysia’s Bridge is Falling Down
Posted by Kit in Anwar Ibrahim, UMNO on Wednesday, 21 July 2010, 5:00 am
By Thor Halvorssen and Alex Gladstein | The Huffington Post
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia–The farcical trial of Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim resumes this week in Kuala Lumpur. This is the second time that the country’s ruling establishment has tried to destroy Anwar’s career with trumped-up allegations of sodomy. It succeeded 12 years ago, when he was imprisoned for six years on similar charges. Now Anwar faces up to 20 years in jail and whipping if convicted.
Controlled by the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) since independence and now led by the increasingly autocratic Prime Minister Najib Razak, the Malaysian government knows Anwar is the only viable threat to its half-century of rule. Anwar became a risk to the government as deputy prime minister in 1998 when he began attacking corruption and calling for reform. Ultimately he became leader of the opposition.
Najib’s UMNO is trying to jail Anwar again in hopes of crushing his People’s Justice Party (PKR). A secular Muslim party, PKR leads a diverse political coalition with ethnic Chinese and Islamist partners. If Anwar is neutralized, this opposition movement would be paralyzed.
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The Prime Minister and the Cabinet tomorrow must censure Nik Ali for crossing the line as a model civil servant in calling Penang Chief Minister “biadap” at an Umno press conference
Posted by Kit in Lim Guan Eng, Najib Razak, Penang Government on Tuesday, 20 July 2010, 3:14 pm
The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak and the Cabinet at their meeting tomorrow must censure the Penang State Development Officer of the Federal Government, Nik Ali Mat Yunus for crossing the line as a model civil servant in calling the Penang Chief Minister, Lim Guan Eng as “biadap” at an Umno press conference in Penang yesterday.
In disregarding the vital distinctions between party and state, and hitting out at the Penang Chief Minister at a Penang Umno press conference, Nik Ali was acting as if he was an Umno operative if not the Chief Umno Plenipotentiary in Penang, forgetting that he is first and foremost a civil servant albeit the top Federal government officer in the state who must fully co-operate with the State Government for the welfare of the state and its people.
In showing disrespect for the Penang Chief Minister, Nik Ali is showing utter contempt for the democratic process, right and decision of the people of Penang to elect the government and Chief Minister of their choice.
Read the rest of this entry »
Can Najib guarantee safety of ex-RMAF sergeant Thamendran while awaiting trial of theft of two jet-fighter engines?
Posted by Kit in Anwar Ibrahim, Corruption, Court, Defence, Law & Order, Najib Razak on Tuesday, 20 July 2010, 1:24 pm
It is another international infamy for Malaysia that former RMAF sergeant N. Tharmendran, 42, feels comparatively safer in Sungai Buloh prison while he awaits trial for the theft of two jet-fighter engines than to be out of jail.
It was only 11 days ago he was freed when he and his family successfully waged a six-month battle to reduce his RM150,000 bail to RM50,000.
It is a terrible indictment on the system of governance in Malaysia that a person should feel safer in prison custody than to be out as a free man, for fear of being abducted and tortured again by military intelligence officers, as Tharmendran had alleged that he had been previously detained and tortured by military intelligence for three weeks and the “favourite torture” was to make him wear a crash helmet where he was repeatedly hit as hard as possible.
Thamendran’s personal safety and welfare while he awaits trial for theft of two jet-fighter engines has again put national and international focus on “institutional degradation” which the New Economic Model had identified as one of the causes of Malaysia’s economic stagnation and “declining growth trajectory”.
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War of words
Posted by Kit in Penang Government on Tuesday, 20 July 2010, 11:13 am
BY HIMANSHU BHATT AND BERNARD CHEAH | The Sun
20 July 2010
GEORGE TOWN: Simmering tensions boiled over yesterday when Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng and the federal-appointed State Development Officer (SDO), who oversees the channelling of all federal allocations for projects in Penang, traded verbal blows at separate press conferences.
Lim accused Nik Ali Mat Yunus (pic) of “openly and blatantly” sabotaging the state government, while the latter, in an outburst uncharacteristic of a civil servant, called Lim biadap (uncivilised) and said he had no right to question his qualification and competency for the job.
“He (Nik Ali) is like a little Napoleon in the civil service who gets high pay and does nothing for the people, but instead causes losses to them,” Lim said during a visit to the Botanic Gardens. He asked who should be held responsible for the RM150,000 plus losses over the scheduled demolition of controversial twin arches, one of which is tilting, that were built only recently for the gardens’ expansion project by the Tourism Ministry.
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The Colour of Scholarships
By Azira Aziz
Considering the function of academic scholarships and thereto just who should be entitled to scholarships.
When Najib proposed to open scholarship opportunities to all top scorers, particularly 9A’s and above, I saluted the move and thought nothing more of the matter. A politician buckling to popular tit-bits is nothing new and at least he’s heading in the right direction. However, it irked me as the usual Malay-rights groups, the Perkasa-led Malay Consultative Council (MPM) responded to it with “constructive” criticisms, claiming that it should reflect 67% composition of the Malay community in Malaysia.
My response to this is this: firstly, Professor Datuk Dr Kamarudin Kachar, not all 67% are Malaysian Malays. Some of them are actually assimilated Indonesians whose parents holds red MyKads. Many Malaysians are denied opportunities on the fallacy that they are of the wrong ethnicity and that they are less likely to be “loyal” to Malaysia. Instead, as long as you are a “Malay,” “imported” or not, you are entitled to a scholarship, and admittance to heavily subsidised boarding schools.
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