Achieving goals with no extra cost

PUTRAJAYA: The government will not increase the number of civil servants or set up new institutions to achieve the country’s goals, Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said yesterday.

He said the existing institutions would be utilised in a more efficient manner, without increasing the cost.

“We are confident that with the wisdom of the administrators and government chosen by the people, we can make changes without increasing the cost of administration,” he said when addressing staff of the Prime Minister’s Department at Dataran Putra, here.

This was Dr Mahathir’s first meeting with the staff after being appointed the country’s seventh prime minister on May 10.

He said that although various changes would be implemented in the administration, these would only be done after carrying out an in-depth study of the current situation.

Dr Mahathir said Malaysia would be able to cope with various challenges if it continued to adhere to the principles of democratic administration.

“We can stand up to the whole world. This was proven when our currency came under attack (during the financial crisis in 1997-1998). We managed to confront the huge crisis because we worked towards one objective, which was to safeguard the nation,” he said.

The prime minister said Malaysia had also transformed from an agriculture-based economy to an industrial country without any major problems.

However, he said, as an industrial nation, more knowledge was required among the administrators to address the demand for new high technology.

“If we do not understand this technology, then we cannot serve the investors. So, we need to improve the capability and knowledge of the administrators, especially in the Prime Minister’s Department,” he added.

Dr Mahathir also said the task of the new administration would be to revive the country and make it respected again throughout the world. He said it was a challenge to bring back good governance and successful development so that the country would once again be recognised as a self-sustaining nation.

“We must be aware that our country is not accorded the respect it once enjoyed. I am very disappointed (now) because at one time we were known as the best administration among the Commonwealth countries as we carried out tasks well and implemented successful programmes and plans.

“But today, we find that this country is no longer respected, and the administrators are no longer held in high regard,” he said.

Dr Mahathir also reminded the staff on the separation of powers in a democratic system – namely the Executive, Legislative and Judiciary – as a form of ‘check and balance’ to restore the country’s honour.

“This separation (of powers) is very important. If there is no check and balance like this, it will lead to undesirable consequences which cannot be reprimanded, prevented or objected to. This is what we have to remember. Administrators are the people with the will to carry out tasks to develop the country.

“Administrators must serve with excellence and not be distracted by other reasons. This is very important, and I am convinced that you (the administrative staff) all know that we as administrators must adhere to our country’s system of democracy,” he added.

The Prime Minister said if the separation of powers did not exist, one branch would end up dominating the other two and would resort to doing things contrary to the laws.

He said the staff of the administration played an important role as people who had pledged to serve the country without fear or favour.

“For example, if administrators are told to do something contrary to the laws of the country, then it is their responsibility not to accept such instructions. We have seen, in the last few years, that administrators have no power to reprimand or oppose instructions which went against the law,” he said.

Dr Mahathir said it had been learned that many administrative staff, due to fear or gratification, had indulged in undesirable actions that could hurt the country.

“We found huge irregularities in the financial management of the country, so much so that now we are saddled with the problem of settling debts that have risen to a trillion ringgit. This (amount of debt) had never been incurred by us. In the past, we had no more than RM300 billion in debt, but now it has increased to over RM1 trillion.

“How do we settle this debt? We will have to rely on our efforts and intellect to overcome this challenge. For this, we need cooperation among the government, elected representatives and the administration.”

Dr Mahathir reiterated that Malaysia would be able to handle the various challenges by adhering to the principles of a democratic system of administration.

“Only in that way can we clean the administration of our country and, when it is clean, recognised, progressive and efficient, then our nation will have been revived. I hope all of you would give your undivided cooperation to me, as your prime minister, so long as what I do is not contrary to the national policies and laws,” he said.

He said the administrators must respect the constitution, which was created not to solely empower the government but also to protect the people from any possible crime that the government might commit.

“This is what we desire. We believe that with the cooperation of the administrators, we would achieve our goals. I hope that with the change of government, we could solve many of the problems, especially the financial issues (that) the country faces.

“For this, we need competent, efficient and trustworthy administrators. This is my only hope,” said Dr Mahathir, as he thanked the audience for the opportunity to explain the stand of the newly-elected government. — Bernama

 

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