Rightways to Success: Warning to civil servants: stop bodek-bodeking, Serve people and govt of the day or else ..

Friday 22 June 2018

Warning to civil servants: stop bodek-bodeking, Serve people and govt of the day or else ..

‘Enough with being yes men’ - MACC chiefs warns top civil servants against brown-nosing

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) has warned civil servants to stop the culture of bodek-bodeking (brown-nosing) in the public service.

Directors-general and heads of department must stop being “yes men” to ministers and deputy ministers, Chief Commissioner Datuk Seri Mohd Shukri Abdull (pic) said.

“Do your own work and don’t interfere in the tasks of others. In fact, civil servants should consider this a warning – from now on, stop with the bodek-bodeking culture.

“By right, ministers have no authority on projects, they can only create policies. That is why the directors-general and heads of department must be brave enough to say no.

“Do not be ministers’ crutches or their yes men. It does not matter if we get kicked around as long as we are doing the right thing,” he told Sinar Harian.

He said that the separation of powers between the legislative, executive and judiciary should be abided by, and boundaries of authority should be clear at each level.

“Do not ever breach the boundaries of another person’s job scope.

“That can cause chaos,” Mohd Shukri said.

He also said heads of department, especially those in enforcement divisions, must give clear and accurate advice to ministers, deputy ministers and other policymakers.

“Only say yes if you know it’s true, don’t just say yes, yes, yes although the matter may be untrue. You must be brave,” he said, adding that they should refer to the MACC if they were unclear about instructions.

Mohd Shukri also called on directors-general and heads of department to be bold enough to give the right advice as demanded by their rank.

“If you are not brave enough to say no to something that is not right, then it’s better to not hold that position in the first place,” he said.

He suggested the Government appreciate those who have served with integrity and not the kaki bodek (apple polishers), saying the latter group was ruining the country’s system.

“Get angry at me if you want, I am speaking the truth and the truth hurts but it’s worth it.

“Look at the situation now. When misdeeds are exposed, who wants to help? No one. Only we can help ourselves,” he said.- The Star

Wan Azizah to civil servants: Serve govt of the day or else ...

Concerned Ministers: (from left) Rina, Dr Wan Azizah and Dr Maszlee speaking to the media during a press conference after chairing the national Children’s Well-being Roadmap meeting in Putrajaya. — Bernama

Civil servants must serve the government of the day and not obstruct the workings of the new administration, says Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.

“It has come to my attention that a small number of civil servants are not supporting, but obstructing, the Pakatan Harapan government.

“This is a warning to those doing so that we expect professionalism from our civil service and for them to serve the government of the day,” she said in a press statement after chairing a meeting for a national Children’s Well-being Roadmap in Putrajaya yesterday.

Her warning follows concerns raised by Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad earlier this month over the loyalty of civil servants who campaigned for Barisan Nasional during GE14.

On the Children’s Well-being Roadmap, Dr Wan Azizah, who is also Women, Family and Community Development Minister, said that more input was needed from stakeholders to develop strategies and programmes to address pressing issues affecting children.

She highlighted the need to develop a more integrated and coherent approach when dealing with children with growth deficiencies.

“We do not want a piecemeal approach to this,” she said.

Dr Wan Azizah said the roadmap would also cover marginalised, stateless and refugee children along with children who are victims of sexual abuse.

“This inter-ministerial meeting was called to create coordination as well as an expression of political will and our determination to get to the bottom of these problems.

“We can’t claim to be a caring society if we ignore and neglect those who are most in need of care,” she added. Present at the meeting were Health Minister Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad, Education Minister Dr Maszlee Malik, Rural Development Minister Rina Mohd Harun, representatives from the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) and Home Ministry secretary-general Datuk Seri Alwi Ibrahim. - The Star

Related: