National pride: Saifuddin Nasution (fifth from left) waving a Jalur Gemilang during the Home Ministry’s monthly assembly in Putrajaya. — Bernama
PUTRAJAYA: To better address integrity issues, the Home Ministry is considering frequent job rotations for agencies under its purview, says Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.
The Home Minister said despite his ministry’s repeated stance against corruption, such cases still occurred.
“In fact, when the Prime Minister spoke about it (on Aug 16), I immediately contacted the ministry secretary-general to find out what agencies are under the Home Ministry.
“Job rotations would help us reduce the potential of disciplinary offences,” he told a press conference after attending the ministry’s monthly assembly here yesterday.
Also present were ministry secretary-general Datuk Ruji Ubi and Bukit Aman CID director Comm Datuk Seri Mohd Shuhaily Mohd Zain, among others.
On Aug 16, when announcing a pay raise for civil servants, Anwar said all heads of department would be subjected to disciplinary action, including ineligibility for promotion, if they fail to report their subordinates’ misconduct.
He also suggested these heads implement job rotations regularly to avoid cases of misconduct among public officials.
Saifuddin Nasution was responding to news that five Immigration Department officers were nabbed by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) on Tuesday.
He said he believed that the MACC had followed due process, which includes surveillance and identification, among others, before acting on a suspected syndicate at KLIA.
“The Home Ministry ... does not compromise on integrity offences.
“Therefore, we welcome the MACC to take action according to the law,” said Saifuddin Nasution, adding that job rotations were a serious initiative to curb corruption.
“So, we will look into the aspect of placement. It doesn’t mean that long-serving officers at an agency are prone to integrity violations, but this is a form of administration and management,” he said.
MACC chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki had said the anti-graft agency recently busted a syndicate operating at entry points, facilitating the entry of foreign nationals into the country without inspection.
Four company owners and five Immigration officers were arrested.
