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The civil service in Malaysia is pivotal around Article 132 of the Constitution of Malaysia which stipulates that the public services shall consist of the Federal and State General Public Service, the Joint Public Services, the Education Service, the Judiciary and the Legal Service and the Armed Forces.
For all intents and purpose, Statutory Bodies and the Local Authorities are also considered as parts of the Public Services. This is because both these autonomous bodies resemble the Public Services in many respects since they adopt the procedures of the Public Services pertaining to appointments, terms and conditions of service and the remuneration system. Besides that, their officers and staff also receive pension and other retirement benefits similar to the employees in the Public Services.
However, with the implementation of the separation concept under the New Remuneration System which became effective on 1 January 1993, several public sector agencies were given the freedom to institute their own policies and procedures. These agencies, whose activities were akin to that of businesses and were in good financial stead, were allowed to determine their own policies and procedures pertaining to appointments, terms and conditions of service.
The current civil service was created in the 1950s but trace its lineage to the 1700s:
After Malaysia's independence in 1957, the current service was created.
Public agencies are agencies in public service at the Federal, State and the Local Government levels. Federal agencies consist of Ministries, Federal Departments and Federal Statutory Bodies. Each ministry is headed by a Minister and assisted by deputy minister(s) and the chief executive officer that is known as the Secretary General. The Prime Minister's Department is also a ministry. Typically there will be a number of departments and possibly one or more statutory bodies as well under a ministry. Head of departments are given the title Director General.
Head of statutory bodies are called chairman while the chief executive officer who is a civil servant is called the General Manager. There are statutory bodies headed by the executive chairman who also functions as the General Manager as is the case in the Employees Provident Fund.
State Agencies consist of state departments, state statutory bodies and local governments (City, Municipal and District Councils).
The term Public Services does not include special institutions such as the Judiciary, Public Services Commissions, the Election Commission and like institutions whose members are appointed by the King. Nevertheless, the organisations providing support or secretarial services to these institutions are public agencies whose officers and staff are from the Public Services. The Public Services also excludes off-budget agencies which are formed under the Companies Act or the Society Act and do not follow policies and procedures of personnel management in the public sector.
Central Agency in Malaysia is important, as it assists the government in formulating policies, co-ordinating, controlling and monitoring the various development programs and projects. Among the main responsibilities (objectives) of the Central Agency are: [1]
As such, the co-ordination and control by the Central Agency, tend to encompass a few crucial aspects or functions: [1]
Central Agencies are also Federal agencies responsible for formulating the national financial and economic policies, the public sector human resource policies, and the monitoring and supervising the implementation of these policies. The central agencies are:
In 2010 Senator Datuk T. Murugiah, a Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, denied in a parliamentary press conference that the government was only focusing on hiring ethnic-Malay civil servants. “People always criticise us for hiring only those from one race to work in the service but it is not true. The percentage of non-Bumiputeras hired by the Public Service Commission has increased in the past few years,” he stated. According to Murugiah 58.2% of the 1,559 Chinese applicants interviewed as of 15 June 2010 have been hired and that the number of Chinese employed in 2010 shows an increase of 9 percent over 2008. 1,833 ethnic Indians were interviewed as of 15 June 2010 and 42.7% of them hired. In 2008 6,106 ethnic Indians were interviewed of which 38.8 percent were hired.“There is no bias there. All races are given opportunity for top management positions. There is no quota system,” added Murugiah. [2]
Malaysia’s bureaucracy is one of the biggest in the world, with 1.7 million civil servants to a population of 32 million, a ratio of 4.5% compared with Singapore’s ratio of 1.5% civil servants to total population, Hong Kong’s 2.3% and Taiwan’s ratio of 2.3%. [3] Some critics have called for the civil service to be trimmed, arguing that the COVID-19 pandemic proved that the Government was able to function just as well at a lower capacity. [4]
A consequence of the size of the civil service is the burgeoning cost of civil service emoluments. Civil service emoluments, including the pension and gratuities bill, which accounts for nearly half of the federal government’s annual revenue. [5] In the past, there have been minimal efforts to reform civil service emoluments as the civil service is typically seen as a vote bank for the government of the day. [6]
Nonetheless, the Congress of Unions of Employees in the Public and Civil Services (Cuepacs) contended the size of country's civil service is still ideal since it includes personnel from the armed forces, police, education and health personnel, which are typically excluded from other countries' definition of public sector. [7]
A 2023 report found that ethnic Malays, comprising 57 per cent of Malaysian citizens, account for 78 per cent of federal government staff — and 80 per cent of top decision-making positions [8]
This has led to assertions that a highly unrepresentative bureaucracy may run counter against efforts to strengthen national unity and also against the popular support for the government itself. [9] According to another observer, the Malay dominance in the military and police serves as the ultimate deterrent to any challenge to the status quo and is intended to demonstrate to the Malay community that political power lies firmly in the hands of "the Malays". [10] Some have posited that the reason civil service is centered on Malays due to the patronage policy practised by the government. [11]
Over the years, opponents have challenged the government to prove that the civil service hires on merit. [12] Some have posited that the reason civil service is centered on Malays due to the patronage policy practised by the government. [13] [14] Opponents are still unhappy at the administrative reforms in the civil service, and warrant that more change, such as, the inclusion of the Non-Malays and Bumiputeras of Sabah and Sarawak, and even ethnic Orang Asli, should all be given a fair chance in the civil service. [15]
Each of the services have their respective appointing authorities as follows:-
Service / Agency | Appointing authority |
---|---|
Federal Public Services | Public Services Commission |
Education Service | Education Service Commission |
Judicial and Legal Service | Judicial and Legal Service Commission |
Police Service | Police Service Commission |
Armed Forces | Armed Forces Council |
Public Services in the states of Melaka, Pulau Pinang, Negeri Sembilan & Perlis | Public Services Commission |
Other state public services | Respective State Public Services Commissions |
Federal and state statutory bodies | Respective Board of Directors |
Local governments | Respective local government |
Bumiputera or bumiputra is a term used in Malaysia to describe Malays, the Orang Asli of Peninsular Malaysia, and various indigenous peoples of East Malaysia. The term is sometimes controversial. It is used similarly in the Malay world, Indonesia, and Brunei.
The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service official, also known as a public servant or public employee, is a person employed in the public sector by a government department or agency for public sector undertakings. Civil servants work for central and state governments, and answer to the government, not a political party.
The United Malays National Organisation ; abbreviated UMNO or less commonly PEKEMBAR, is a nationalist right-wing political party in Malaysia. As the oldest national political party within Malaysia, UMNO has been known as Malaysia's "Grand Old Party".
The 13 May incident was an episode of Sino-Malay sectarian violence that took place in Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia, on 13 May 1969. The riot occurred in the aftermath of the 1969 Malaysian general election when opposition parties such as the Democratic Action Party and Gerakan made gains at the expense of the ruling coalition, the Alliance Party.
Article 153 of the Constitution of Malaysia grants the Yang di-Pertuan Agong responsibility for "safeguard[ing] the special position of the 'Malays'(see note) and natives of any of the States of Sabah and Sarawak and the legitimate interests of other communities" and goes on to specify ways to do this, such as establishing quotas for entry into the civil service, public scholarships and public education.
The social contract in Malaysia is a political construct first brought up in the 1980s, allegedly to justify the continuation of the discriminatory preferential policies for the majority Bumiputera at the expense of the non-Bumiputera, particularly the Chinese and Indian citizens of the country. Generally describing the envisaged 20-year initial duration of the Malaysian New Economic Policy, proponents of the construct allege that it reflects an "understanding" arrived at – prior to Malaya's independence in 1957 – by the country's "founding fathers", which is an ill-defined term generally taken to encompass Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia's first Prime Minister, as well as V. T. Sambanthan and Tan Cheng Lock, who were the key leaders of political parties representing the Malay, Indian and Chinese populations respectively in pre-independence Malaya.
The National Principles is the Malaysian declaration of national philosophy instituted by royal proclamation on Merdeka Day, 1970, in reaction to the 13 May race riots, which occurred in 1969. The riots proved at that time that Malaysian racial balance and stability was fragile. Immediately thereafter, the Malaysian government sought ways to foster unity among the various races in Malaysia. Therefore, the National Principles were formed.
Law enforcement in Malaysia is performed by numerous law enforcement agencies and primarily the responsibility of the Royal Malaysia Police. Like many federal nations, the nature of the Constitution of Malaysia mandates law and order as a subject of a state, which means that local government bodies also have a role to play in law enforcement, therefore the bulk of the policing lies with the respective states and territories of Malaysia. Below are some of the law enforcement bodies and agencies of Malaysia.
In Malaysian politics, the Malay Agenda is a concept related to the ideal of ketuanan Melayu. Although it did not feature in public discussion for much of the 20th century, in the early 2000s, it came to prominence due to its usage in the discourse of several politicians from the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), the leading political party in Malaysia. The Malay Agenda is closely related to the UMNO, which sees itself as the guardian of the Malay ethnic group in Malaysia.
Malaysia is a multi-ethnic country, with a predominantly Muslim population. Racial discrimination is embodied within the social and economic policies of the Malaysian government, favouring the Malays and in principle, the natives of Sabah and Sarawak. However, in practice, the natives of Sabah and Sarawak do not benefit much from these policies, with natives of Sabah and Sarawak composing the bulk of bottom 40% income cohort of Malaysia. Rather, it is the Malays that obtain heavily subsidised education in local universities and make up the bulk of these universities, including in terms of employment. In fact, the resources of Sarawak have been exploited for decades, with the Malaysian government enriching governmental officials and their associates. The concept of Ketuanan Melayu or Malay supremacy is accepted by the Malay-majority political sphere.
The Chief Secretary to the Government is the most senior officer in the Malaysian Civil Service, secretary to the Cabinet of Malaysia and secretary-general of the Prime Minister's Department.
The sixth Sarawak state election was held between Friday, 27 September and Saturday, 28 September 1991. This election elected 56 state representatives into the Sarawak State Assembly. This election saw 72.8% of the eligible voters to cast their votes.
The Prime Minister's Department is a federal government ministry in Malaysia. Its objective is "determining the services of all divisions are implemented according to policy, legislation / regulations and current guidelines". It is headed by the Prime Minister of Malaysia followed by other Minister in the Prime Minister's Department. The Department consists of the Prime Minister's Office, the Deputy Prime Minister's Office and more than 50 other government agencies and entities. The Prime Minister's Department was established on July 1957. Its headquarters are in Perdana Putra, Putrajaya.
The Malaysian order of precedence is a hierarchy of important positions within the Government of Malaysia. It has no legal standing but is used by ceremonial protocol. The order of precedence is determined by the Federal Order of Precedence issued by the Prime Minister's Department. The latest one was issued on 13 November 2014. Unless otherwise noted, precedence among persons of equal rank is determined by seniority. As a general rule, spouses share the same rank with another and a person with two positions will take the highest one.
The Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry, abbreviated MITI, is a ministry of the Government of Malaysia that is responsible for international trade, industry, investment, productivity, small and medium enterprise, development finance institution, halal industry, automotive, steel, strategic trade. The ministry has its headquarters located at Menara MITI on Jalan Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah in Kuala Lumpur and the building is also a component of Naza TTDI’s 75.5-acre KL Metropolis, a mixed development that is envisioned to be the International Trade and Exhibition District for Kuala Lumpur. It is one of the three ministries that has not moved to Putrajaya.
Halal Development Corporation Berhad, or HDC, is a Malaysian federal government agency mandated as the custodian of Malaysia's Halal economy, and featured as a trusted partner in the Halal business. Its mission is to generate opportunities for the community of stakeholders within Malaysia's Halal ecosystem.
Malaysians are citizens who are identified with the country of Malaysia. Although citizens make up the majority of Malaysians, non-citizen residents and overseas Malaysians may also claim a Malaysian identity.
Shared Prosperity Vision 2030, is a government blueprint released in 2020 by the Government of Malaysia for the period of 2021 to 2030 to increase the incomes of all ethnic groups, particularly the Bumiputera comprising the B40, the hardcore poor, the economically poor, those in economic transition, Orang Asli, Sabah and Sarawak bumiputeras, the disabled, youths, women, children and senior citizens.
Department of Islamic Development Malaysia or popularly known as JAKIM, is a federal government agency in Malaysia that administers Islamic affairs in Malaysia.
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