Zaki’s statement an insult to Dayaks — Baru

Posted on August 31, 2012, Friday

KUCHING: State PKR chairman Baru Bian lambasted the chairman of Special Review Commission on Civil Service Transformation Tun Zaki Azmi for his statement about relaxing the qualification requirement for minority groups in Sabah and Sarawak to allow them to enter the civil service.

He said the statement was a gross insult to the Dayaks as it implied that the ethnic groups of Sabah and Sarawak did not have the qualification to join the esteemed civil service.

He wondered whether the ‘magnanimous’ gesture of the commission was yet another election gimmick.

“I cannot help but feel indignant and annoyed by his statement.

“Any reasonable person reading the statement would take it to mean that the ethnic groups of Sabah and Sarawak do not have the intelligence and qualifications to join the esteemed civil service.”

The Ba Kelalan assemblyman said that it was “too simplistic to assume that the percentage of ethnic people in the civil service was low because they did not meet the requirements”.

Baru said he agreed with Orang Ulu National Association (Miri) chairman Peter Kallang who reportedly said yesterday that Zaki’s statement was a mockery and an insult.

Among others, Peter also said the statement meant that very few Dayaks were qualified enough to take up jobs at the civil service.

“We have many qualified Dayaks working all over the world with some even employed by international companies, what do you mean we are not qualified?” Peter asked.

Baru went on to suggest that the commission also consider why there were so many civil servants and that the heads of most federal departments and agencies in the state were from Peninsular Malaysia.

He questioned the rationale of sending civil servants from Peninsular Malaysia to fill positions in the state which Sarawakians were perfectly capable of taking up.

Baru urged the commission to consider the suggestions made by the director of Centre for Policy Initiatives Dr Lim Teck Ghee in an article ‘Correcting the Civil Service Racial Imbalance’ dated June 10, 2012, to address the issue.

Dr Lim suggested that a new civil service quota – 60:40 – that would guarantee Malay dominance (but not over dominance) would help to bring about a gradual increase in the number and proportion of non-Malay civil servants in the country.

Among others Dr Lim also said all recruitment, appointment, promotion and other service related committees and boards should have full multi-racial representation.

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