PETALING JAYA: All ministry secretaries-general should report directly to the Prime Minister on ways to improve the quality of the public service sector, says a former senior civil servant.
Former Finance Ministry deputy secretary-general Tan Sri Ramon Navaratnam (pic) said it was secretaries-general who knew best what was needed for their ministries, and could propose various ways to improve them, which may include downsizing.
“Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is on the right track. There is a lot of overlap (between government agencies) that has been built up over a long time.
“He (Anwar) made an impressive start with ending the tenures of chairmen and board members who were regarded as political appointees in federal statutory bodies and government-linked corporations, and he is now following up with the whole inflated bureaucracy.
“A complete review of the public service sector is needed, and the recent measures announced by the Prime Minister are just the beginning,” he told The Star yesterday.
Ramon said reforms in the public service sector could only happen with good implementation, which was dependent on the quality of personnel appointed.
“The reorganisation (of the public sector) should include having a multiracial makeup with appointments also being based on merit.
“This ensures better services while also bridging the gap between the sector and the rakyat.
“Or else, we will have the same outcome and (this would) impair our progress (as a nation),” he said.
Apart from reports by secretaries-general, Ramon said the Prime Minister could also look towards corporations on ways to improve the public service sector.
He said public forums involving the private sector and the public themselves was also a must in reforming the sector.
“The government could form a secretariat to invite ideas and proposals from the public, and later use the input to provide firm recommendations to the Prime Minister who can take decisive action to increase the efficiency of the public service sector,” he added.
He said he believed the initiatives taken by Anwar had sparked hope in Malaysians of a better future for the country.
Ramon was commenting on Anwar’s announcement yesterday that the National Recovery Council (NRC) and several government agencies have been disbanded due to overlapping tasks.
