PUTRAJAYA, Dec 2 — The government will revive the town hall session, which will serve as a platform for ministries and secretaries-general (KSU) to inform people about measures and actions taken in response to the findings of the Auditor General’s Report (LKAN).
Chief Secretary to the Government (KSN) Tan Sri Mohd Zuki Ali said he had instructed the Public Service Department (PSD) to carry out the town hall session to allow KSUs to clarify the measures taken in response to issues raised in the LKAN.
“We conducted the town hall session before, and I have instructed the PSD to do the same thing…we will revive the town hall session to clarify the issues raised in LKAN.
“InsyaAllah, we will inform the actions we take through this town hall session. I have instructed the PSD to hold the session and call KSUs to respond,” he said in an interview to mark the One Year Anniversary of Unity Government led by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
The town hall session with the media following LKAN’s tabling was previously held in 2015, 2016, and 2017, with the KSN, KSUs, department heads, and government servants in attendance.
On Nov 22, LKAN 2022 revealed a total of RM681.71 million in public funds were identified as losses in six government programmes following 16 performance audits conducted on 14 ministries involving RM208.882 billion.
Auditor General Datuk Wan Suraya Wan Mohd Radzi said the six programmes were the Padi Planting Management Programme, Langkawi Development Authority (Lada) Property Development Management, the management and regulation of firearms of the departments and agencies under the Home Ministry, the management of the Marine Protected Area Conversation Programme, the Investment Promotion Programme for the Manufacturing Sector, and the management of the Safe City Programme.
On Anwar’s call for department heads to minute all discussions regarding the LKAN, Zuki said it proves the Prime Minister takes the LKAN findings seriously and does not want the public service to make the same mistakes again.
The KSN will also examine all the minuted LKAN reports at the ministry and department levels before bringing them to the Prime Minister’s attention.
On November 6, during the monthly assembly with the Prime Minister’s Department’s staff, Anwar called on all department heads, directors-general, and secretaries-general to minute all discussions regarding the LKAN before handing it over to the KSN.
He said LKAN must be re-examined to improve administrative governance, in addition to being able to identify and help reduce leakages in the country’s administration.
Meanwhile, Zuki said to eradicate corruption and improve administrative governance, the government will introduce the National Anti-Corruption Strategy (NACS) as a continuation of the National Anti-Corruption Action Plan (NACP) 2019-2023.
“This proves that the Prime Minister’s focus this time is not solely on enforcing misconduct or punishing those found guilty.
“It is even more than that; he wants to see that good governance practices start with the civil servants themselves,” he said.
— Bernama
