Enam bulan tunggu jawapan

Berita Harian

SAYA kecewa terhadap Pentadbir Tanah Batang Padang, Tapah, kerana enggan memberi sebarang jawapan mengenai kedudukan sebenar Rancangan Pertanian Berkelompok Wilayah Sungai Pahlawan Mukim Bidor, yang saya adalah penerima satu lot pada November, 2002.

Beberapa kali, saya menulis surat kepada pihak berkenaan serta bertemu dengan kerani pejabat dan akhir sekali berjumpa sendiri dengan Pentadbir Tanah yang juga Pegawai Daerah, enam bulan lalu, namun sehingga kini tiada jawapan diterima walaupun pernah berjanji memberi jawapan dengan segera.

Timbalan Pengarah dan Penolong Pengarah Tanah dan Galian Perak juga dua kali meminta penjelasan mengenai perkara itu, tetapi Pentadbir Tanah Batang Padang tetap tidak menghiraukannya.

Menteri Besar Perak, pernah memberi kenyataan yang mahukan Pejabat Tanah dan Galian menggunakan sistem komputer yang canggih bagi mempercepatkan urusan tanah, namun sehingga kini tidak mencapai sasarannya.

BEKAS PEGAWAI KERAJAAN,
Tapah, Perak.

Limits of authority

The Sun

"... every official, from the Prime Minister down to a constable or a collector of taxes, is under the same responsibility for every act done without legal justification as any other citizen. The [Law] Reports abound with cases in which officials have been brought before the courts, and made, in their personal capacity, liable to punishment, or to the payment of damages, for acts done in their official character but in excess of their lawful authority. [Appointed government officials and politicians, alike] ... and all subordinates, though carrying out the commands of their official superiors, are as responsible for any act which the law does not authorise as is any private and unofficial person.

– Law of the Constitution (London: MacMillan, 9th ed., 1950).

These prophetic words I chanced upon while surfing the Net on "rule of law" over the weekend did not allow concentration on the Liverpool-Newcastle match or the Arsenal-Wigan game. The key words – "the same responsibility", "excess of their lawful authority" and "liable to punishment" – kept repeating themselves in my mind.

Shouldn’t the members of the Selangor Executive Council be brought before the courts, and made, in their personal capacity, liable to punishment, or to the payment of damages, for acts done in their official character but in excess of their lawful authority? Why not? By alienating land meant for low-cost housing to a sitting councillor’s wife at a fraction of the market price, they must have acted in "excess of their lawful authority." But then, alienation of land has always been done in secrecy. The consolation they can take is that little is known about the limits of their authority and hence, it will be a difficult case for the rakyat to prove!

Shouldn’t the officials of the Youth and Sports Ministry be brought before the courts, and made, in their personal capacity, liable to punishment, or to the payment of damages, for acts done in their official character but in excess of their lawful authority? The ministry used taxpayers’ money to the tune of RM17 million to stage an international junior inter-club tournament, which ended in a flop. The question is: Did the ministry act in excess of lawful authority? By all standards and norms, tournaments are organised by sports bodies and associations. It had no business to go into sports business. Period.

Shouldn’t the enforcement officers from the Klang Municipal Council be brought before the courts, and made, in their personal capacity, liable to punishment, or to the payment of damages, for acts done in their official character but in excess of their lawful authority? After all, they dragged an innocent tailor from his shop, bundled him into a car and took him away – all because his brother had an altercation with the officers. In the eyes of the law, it would be abduction, trespass to person and wrongful confinement. Shouldn’t they be held personally liable for unlawful use of force, let alone acting in excess of their lawful authority?

Shouldn’t the president and officials of the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council be brought before the courts, and made, in their personal capacity, liable to punishment, or to the payment of damages, for acts done in their official character but in excess of their lawful authority? How could they have not acted in excess of their lawful authority when they allowed an unlicensed beer garden to operate on a school’s land reserve? Did they ignore the fact that its proximity to a school is an important factor before licences are issued for a beer garden?

Shouldn’t the past presidents and officials of the Petaling Jaya City Council be brought before the courts, and made, in their personal capacity, liable to punishment, or to the payment of damages, for acts done in their official character but in excess of their lawful authority? Did they act in lawful authority when they decreed that all applications for outdoor billboard licences should go through the sports club? They definitely broke the law by accepting "donations" in lieu of licence fees from advertisers! Besides, proceeds from the sales of its own publications were channelled to the sports club. If there’s an open-and-shut case of excess of their lawful authority, this is it!

Shouldn’t the presidents and officials of the Subang Jaya Municipal Council be brought before the courts, and made, in their personal capacity, liable to punishment, or to the payment of damages, for acts done in their official character but in excess of their lawful authority?

They made a ruling that the businesses in municipality should use the services of a consortium for pest control services. Since when did the council have powers to decide on such services which do not come under its purview? To add insult to injury, some of the companies in the consortium had not been registered with the Pesticides Board, which is a legal requirement. Did they act in excess of their lawful authority?

So, if only the rule of law is followed, there’ll be quite a number of councillors, politicians and government officials behind bars, but this theory will remain a fallacy for as long as the powers-that-be lack the will and determination to put it into practice.

The broom blunder

The Sun
Radzuan Halim

To make punishments efficacious, two things are necessary; they must never be disproportioned to the offence, and they must be certain. – Simms

The recent "award" of brooms to two local council heads had raised a right royal ruckus. The ordinary-looking brooms were handed over by Selangor Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Khir Toyo to two heads of district councils in Selangor which had failed to fulfil set financial targets.

The picture of Khir presenting a broom to the president of the Hulu Selangor District Council, an officer of the Malaysian Civil Service (MCS), created a furore. Public opinion was mostly against such awards. But there was a spirited defence of it as well.

Those against view the award as going against local traditions and beliefs. A broom supposedly symbolises a "sial" (accursed) instrument which can only bring bad luck and humiliation for the recipient. The contra view is that officers in government agencies had been getting the cushy treatment for too long, had not been performing to par and needed harsher treatment from their bosses.

The award apparently did not go down well with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi who uncharacteristically stated his views in no uncertain terms. He was quoted as saying, "It should not have happened at all. Use more effective methods to enhance the performance of agencies." He also regarded such awards as "demeaning... undignified... humiliating... (and) should be scrapped". By the looks of it, that would be the first and the last of such broom awards in Malaysia. It may be noted that our prime minister was a senior MCS officer prior to his entry into full-time politics.

Some friends regarded the award as reflective of more important issues. A retired civil servant told me that he was deeply disturbed and had a sleepless night over it. He felt that such an award reflected the low status and esteem currently faced by the inner civil service, at least in the eyes of some senior politicians. According to him, in the old days MCS officers, even junior ones, were accorded great deference by the highest in the land.

Another friend, a Second World War buff, was of the view that dishing out such "punishment" to one’s own officers and men could spell trouble for the giver. He gave the example of General George S. Patton, commander of the US Third Army in France, a war hero and military strategist, who met his downfall after striking a combat-shocked soldier with his gloves.

Yet another friend, a lawyer with human-rights leanings regarded such awards to be contrary to the norms of common law. He asked me to look up the US Constitutional Amendment Article VIII, which reads, "Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted." Personally, I find describing the broom award as "cruel and unusual punishment" to be somewhat excessive.

From the above discussion, you can see that there is a lot more to the broom award than meets the eye. Let me share with you some of my research findings.

English: There are several expressions involving brooms. There’s the popularly used proverb "New brooms sweep clean". This is a somewhat sarcastic description of newly appointed office-holders who start off enthusiastically. In time they become no better than their predecessors. "Swept her off her feet" refers to those whirlwind romances in which the girl is thoroughly impressed with a beau she’s only just met. "To sweep under the carpet" is to hide problems while keeping up appearances. Which reminds you of Enron and the subprime debacles – two financial disasters which were successfully kept hidden for extended periods.

Apart from the broom being used by English witches to fly about, the broom does not signify any real taboo nor an object of condemnation for Englishmen. William Shakespeare made only one mention of broom in his plays. It was uttered by Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

"... not a mouse

Shall disturb this hallow’d house.

I am sent with broom before

To sweep the dust behind the door".

Chinese: I was told early in life that the Chinese do not sweep their houses on the first day of the Lunar New Year. This "pantang" is observed in order to avoid sweeping away the good luck coming with the onset of the new year.

One morning I accompanied a Chinese colleague, a senior executive, up the lift to his office. He was known to enjoy a flutter or two at the race course and this was a Saturday. At the lift, a cleaner was sweeping the floor and the broom ends just barely touched my friend’s well-polished shoes. His face turned slightly red and his steps became more brisk. When he reached the office he immediately called the building supervisor to issue a terse reprimand, "Why do you have to clean when people are walking in? Why do you not use vacuum cleaners? Out of date to use brooms!" It is clear that for the Chinese, the broom is not associated with good luck.

Malay: The controversial award involved Malays and so Malay cultural underpinnings are highly relevant here. It is common for Malays to refer to "broom" as a term of rebuke or worse. A married lady would confide to a female friend, Kalau dia berani kahwin lagi, aku kejar dengan penyapu! ("If that hubby of mine dares to take a young wife, I will chase him with the broom stick.") Or an unwanted visitor is forewarned, Jangan tunjok muka, nanti kena penyapu. ("Don’t come around, you’ll get the broom treatment.")

Given such invocation of "broom" in everyday language, it is not surprising for many Malays to regard the use of the broom as a source of humiliation and an affront to personal dignity for the recipient.

In looking up literary sources, I found many references to perahu (boats) but very little on penyapu. However, I managed to find a gem in MBRAS’ (Malaysia Branch Royal Asiatic Society) collection of Malay Proverbs and Sayings by E.S. Hose of the Malayan Civil Service (1933 ).

Penyapu diikat benang sutera (A broom tied up in silk). Explanation by author, "A beggar in finery."

There you have it. One does not present a symbol of beggary to one’s own officer, what more to a senior officer of the crown.

Radzuan Halim, a former banker, teaches MBA and law students.

Urusan di Pejabat Daerah dan Tanah Marang lebih pantas

Utusan Online

MARANG 29 Nov. – Inisiatif Pejabat Daerah dan Tanah Marang membangunkan aplikasi sistem rangkaian dalaman bagi melancar dan memudahkan proses tindakan berjaya memendekkan tempoh masa setiap urusan berkaitan orang ramai sebanyak 20 hingga 30 peratus.

Enam aplikasi tersebut iaitu bagi urusan tender, perolehan, mesyuarat, duti setem, maklumat Jawatankuasa Kemajuan dan Keselamatan Kampung (JKKK) serta permohonan pembangunan tanah dibangunkan sendiri oleh kakitangan jabatan itu sejak tahun lepas dengan kos tidak lebih RM1,000.

Hasil kreativiti mereka membolehkan Pejabat Daerah dan Tanah Marang terpilih sebagai calon akhir Anugerah Kualiti Sektor Awam (AKSA) bagi disiplin Anugerah Kualiti Pentadbiran Daerah dan Tanah Tahun 2007 yang berlangsung esok di ibu negara.

Menurut Pegawai Daerah Marang, Abdul Rahman Che Ali, aplikasi sistem rangkaian dalaman jabatan membolehkan beliau memantau pergerakan setiap kakitangan di samping mengenal pasti status tindakan semasa setiap urusan tanpa melibatkan perjalanan fail.

‘‘Sistem ini banyak membantu meningkatkan prestasi kerja malah sejak diperkenalkan, kakitangan kita tidak lagi merungut kerana banyak kerja walaupun jabatan ini masih kekurangan kira-kira 20 pekerja,” katanya ketika ditemui di sini hari ini.

Beliau memberitahu, tiga aplikasi iaitu sistem duti setem, permohonan pembangunan tanah dan maklumat JKKK serta profail daerah boleh diakses oleh orang ramai untuk mengetahui status permohonan mereka di e-Kios yang ditempatkan di lobi jabatan dengan hanya memasukkan nombor kad pengenalan atau fail permohonan.

Malah jelasnya, aplikasi tersebut boleh diakses termasuk oleh pelajar dalam tempoh tujuh hari seminggu.

Katanya, sistem tender, perolehan dan mesyuarat pula sentiasa dipantau bagi membolehkan pihak pengurusan mengenal pasti prestasi kakitangan yang dipertanggungjawabkan.

Beliau memberitahu, semua sistem rangkaian tersebut mempunyai kawalan keselamatan melalui penggunaan kata laluan dan kakitangan hanya dibenar untuk mengakses aplikasi yang berkaitan dengan tugas mereka sahaja.

Hasil kejayaan sistem itu, pihaknya berhasrat membangunkan dua lagi aplikasi iaitu untuk sistem laporan prestasi kakitangan dan sistem pengurusan pilihan raya Parlimen Marang.

Jelasnya, pihaknya mendapat permintaan daripada jabatan lain supaya meningkatkan aplikasi tersebut di peringkat antara jabatan, namun ia perlu mendapat kelulusan Unit Pengurusan Maklumat Negeri Terengganu.

Pejabat Daerah dan Tanah Marang mempunyai 150 kakitangan yang menguruskan pentadbiran daerah seluas 68,399.6 hektar meliputi lapan mukim iaitu Alur Limbat, Rusila, Pulau Kerengga, Mercang, Jenung, Bukit Payong (Pekan), Bukit Payong (Binjai Rendah) dan Bukit Payong (Wakaf Tapai) dengan 150 penduduk bagi setiap satu kilometer persegi.

Office boy spots RM9.7m land grab

NSTP

KUALA LUMPUR: An alert office boy has stumbled on the fraudulent transfer of a piece of land worth RM9.7 million in the "Golden Triangle".

He works for the legal firm engaged by Taiwanese investor Chen Wei Pin to handle the sale of his land.

MCA Public Services and Complaints Bureau head Datuk Michael Chong told a news conference that Chen and his two brothers had bought the 1,580 square metre plot of land behind Plaza See Hoy Chan in Changkat Raja Chulan in 1990 and had the original land title to prove their ownership.

In April, Chen decided to sell the land to Lim Chai Beng, who paid the 10 per cent deposit and tried to lodge a caveat on the land to protect his interest while the sale was completed.

The office boy did a land search at the Kuala Lumpur Land Office in June and discovered that the Malaysian director of a private company registered here had entered a private caveat on the land.
Chen's lawyer, Justin Chin, helped him to lodge a report at the Dang Wangi police station on July 6, in which he said he was told the director had sworn a statutory declaration claiming that Chen had sold the land to his company.

Chen said neither he nor his brothers had ever heard of the company or the director and lodged another police report on Thursday. He said in this report that he instructed his lawyers to issue warning notices dated July 4 and July 11 to the director to withdraw the caveat, but he had not done so.

He then told the lawyers to file an application to remove the caveat from the Land Registry on July 9 and to lodge their own caveat on the land.

But their application was rejected by the Land Registrar on July 10. To this day, the application to remove the director's caveat had not been dealt with by the Registrar, the report said.

On Wednesday, another land search showed that another Malaysian was now the registered owner of the property through a memorandum of transfer registered on Oct 24.

Chen said his lawyers told him they were advised by the Registrar to lodge a police report to enable them to lodge a Registrar's caveat on the land to stop all further transactions on the land.

Chong and bureau legal adviser Datuk Theng Fook said, over the past five years, they had received 17 such complaints in several states involving idle and prime land worth some RM30 million.

"We have met Commercial Crime Investigation Department director Datuk Ramli Yusuff, the Selangor menteri besar and other authorities to inform them of these land fraud cases.

"The reputation and investment climate of the country are at stake when such cases happen. We want the problem to be tackled at the cabinet level," added Theng.

Theng said the transfer was highly suspicious as the Federal Territory land office had said the files were missing, but computer records showed the transfer was made and a new land title was issued.

Chong said they strongly suspected that Chen's case was an "inside job".

E-Tanah more efficient

The Star

PUTRAJAYA: Amendments to the National Land Code 1965 will ensure a more efficient land office administration, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

Changes to the Act would include the e-Tanah system to be extended to the entire peninsula, following its successful implementaion in Penang last month.

Land talk: Najib chairing land council meeting in Putrajaya yesterday. On his right is Deputy Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk S. Sothinathan. — Bernama

“The pilot project in Penang, which promises to cut transaction time by half, is on schedule and is being implemented,” he told reporters after chairing the Cabinet committee meeting yesterday.

Najib said the amendments would be tabled at the next Parliament session.

Another proposed amendment is to empower state authorities to appoint agents to collect land premiums which is currently done through representatives of post offices and banks, he said.

The amendments would also allow permanent titles to be issued without having to first give temporary occupation licence, he said, adding that state authorities would also be allowed to approve applications to partition land that was less than 0.4ha.

Najib said another amendment would be to increase fines from RM10,000 to RM50,000 and the jail term from one year to five years for illegal extraction and removal of sand.

The Small Estate (Distribution) Act would also be amended to increase the value of small estates from RM600,000 to RM2mil.

“This will help in the smoother distribution of ancestral properties without having to go to court for a settlement,” he said.

Najib also confirmed that Sime Darby Bhd had been given the responsibility to lay the undersea power cable for the Bakun Dam project to generate power from Sarawak to Peninsular Malaysia.

“It will undertake the project but whether it will outsource it or not, that is something else,” he said.

The cable project will involve laying two 700km submarine cables from Tanjung Datu on the Sarawak coast to Johor, overland lines covering the 600km from Bakun to Tanjung Datu and overland lines from the landing site in Johor to Bentong, 300km away.

e-Kadaster, e-Tanah selesai kes tanah tertunggak

Utusan Online

Oleh NORLIZA ABDUL RAHMAN

PUTRAJAYA 18 Okt. – Kira-kira 500,000 kes tertunggak berkaitan hak milik tanah dan geran dijangka dapat diselesaikan apabila kerajaan melaksanakan sistem e-Kadaster dan e-Tanah mulai tahun depan.

Pelaksanaan projek yang bernilai RM287 juta itu mampu mempercepatkan sistem pengukuran hak milik tanah daripada dua tahun kepada dua bulan dan dijangka siap sepenuhnya tahun depan.

Program pantas yang pertama di Asia dan setanding dengan negara-negara maju dalam urusan pengeluaran hak milik tanah itu akan memudahkan lagi urusan Jabatan Ukur dan Pemetaan (Jupem).

Setiausaha Parlimen Kementerian Sumber Asli dan Alam Sekitar, Datuk Sazmi Miah berkata, penggunaan e-Kadaster dan e-Tanah akan membantu mengurangkan masa menunggu kerana geran tanah boleh disiapkan hanya dalam sehari.

‘‘e-Kadaster dan e-Tanah ini akan membantu menyediakan pelbagai perkhidmatan yang disediakan oleh Jupem kerana ia bertanggungjawab menjalankan ukuran halus bagi lot-lot tanah dan penyediaan Pelan Akui bagi pengeluaran hak milik,” katanya kepada Utusan Malaysia di sini.

Beliau menjelaskan, pelaksanaan e-Kadaster itu dapat mewujudkan sistem Pengurusan Data Kadaster, membangunkan Pangkalan Data Ukur Strata /Stratum/Marin, menyediakan infrastruktur dan maklumat serta memanfaatkan penggunaan Teknologi Satelit (GPS) dalam pengukuran kadaster.

‘‘Selama ini kita selalu mendengar rakyat mengeluh kerana terpaksa menunggu lama untuk menyelesaikan masalah geran dan hak milik tanah. Mulai tahun depan segala-galanya akan selesai.

‘‘Projek-projek pembangunan yang sebelum ini banyak tertangguh disebabkan oleh urusan tanah juga dapat diselesaikan dan sekali gus membantu memacu ekonomi negara,’’ katanya.

E-Kadaster untuk Jupem itu dibangunkan oleh syarikat bumiputera, Precision Portal Sdn. Bhd. (Precision).

Kerja-kerja infrastruktur Kawasan Kadaster melibatkan negeri seluruh Semenanjung telah dilakukan dalam tempoh empat bulan bermula Mei lalu.

Ia melibatkan kewujudan Sistem Penentu Lokasi Global (GPS) dengan 25,000 titik cerapan di seluruh Semenanjung.

Land transactions backlog to be cleared by year end

NSTP

The Selangor Land and Mines Department has pledged to clear the backlog in land transactions by the end of the year.

However, the commitment is only for “clear cut cases and those which meet the criteria for such transactions as defined by its client’s charter.”

The commitment was given following a visit to the department by the Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Mohamed Sidek Hassan last Thursday.

In a statement, Prime Minister’s Department public relations officer Saipol Anwar Mohd Raji said during the visit, the department had outlined its efforts to clear the backlog.

The following is the status of cases involving backlog at the department:
* 533,001 of the 533,216 cases involving registration and non-registration matters had been cleared;

* 44,634 of the 49,289 cases involving land title applications have been cleared;

* 120,473 of the 232,109 cases involving the registration and release of strata titles have been settled; and

* 442,837 of the 1,069,305 cases involving work to transfer temporary temporary titles to permanent titles have been completed.

Saipol said those who faced difficulty in getting their land matters settled should contact the Selangor State Secretary, Datuk Ramli Mahmud, at 03-55447042, or send a fax to 03-55103062 or email ramli@selangor.gov.my.

They could also contact Selangor Land and Mines department director Abd Nasir Hassan at 03-55447801/7802, or send a fax to 03-55102658 or email abdnasir@selangor.gov.my.

Saipol said the chief secretary’s visit was part of the government’s effort to improve its delivery system.

Land switched in death

The Sun

R. Nadeswaran and Terence Fernandez

PETALING JAYA (July 22, 2007): If the Sabak Bernam Land Office records are anything to go by, a man who died in 1951, walked out of his grave 26 years later to sign the necessary papers to transfer his Malay Reserve land to a third party of Chinese descent.

Raja Hussin Raja Hassan who acquired the land in 1917 died on April 25, 1951. But records show that the land had been transferred to See Lim Poh on April 1, 1977.

Now, Raja Hussin’s grandson, Zainal Aabidin Jamaluddin, wants to get back what he says is rightfully his, but the Sabak Bernam Land Office says the "old records" of ownership cannot be traced.

But he has photocopies of the original title where he claims are some discrepancies.
Raja Hussin had inherited 13 lots comprising over 10 acres of Malay Reserve Land in Sabak Bernam from his father Raja Hassan Raja Dol in 1917. (the latter was given the land by virtue of his lineage to the State Ruler).

Raja Hussin proceeded to obtain a Letter of Administration from the Kuala Lumpur Supreme Court in 1946.

When he died in 1951, Raja Hussin’s son Idris continued with the petitions to obtain the necessary documents. This was an endevour that lasted until 1977 when the family discovered that the land has since been alienated to See.

Raja Hussin had in the 1940s allowed See to cultivate coconuts on that land.

Zainal Aabidin says the Sabak Bernam Land Office has since claimed through a letter on Aug 8, 2000, that it could not trace the original grant/land title which lists Raja Hussin as the owner.

A title search on the lots revealed that the land belongs to one See who has since sub-divided them equally among his six children.

Today, that land forms part of the Sungai Besar township and houses a supermarket and bus station.

"I had on several occassions tried to obtain the land titles but the Land Office was very unco-operative," said Zainal Aabidin who has since lodged several police reports against the Land Office.

He said he was offered another piece of land outside the township which is lower valued.

"That land is now worth millions. All I want is what rightfully belongs to my family," said Zainal Aabidin.

An extract of two lots of the land obtained last month lists Sin Chai Leng and Sin Chai Chew as respective owners.

Lawyer Derek Fernandez, who specialises in planning and land law, said only the sultan has the authority to change the status of Malay Reserve Land.

"However, it can only be done in accordance with the National Land Council’s policies on Malay ownership of land, wherein a replacement of similar status and value must be given to the owner whose land is taken from him.

"Even so, the removal of Malay Reserve Land must be done in the interest of Malays," said Fernandez.

He said anyhing otherwise would be in violation with the land rights of Malays.

Fernandez added that a Malay could lease his Malay Reserve Land to a non-Malay to derive profit, but not sell the land to him.

Scheming at Selangor land office

The Star

KUALA LANGAT: Some land office employees are hiding applications for land, with the aim of grabbing prime land for themselves.

Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Mohammad Khir Toyo said the matter came to light when aggrieved parties submitted complaint letters, complete with evidence, to him.

“We have learnt that such cases occurred in Hulu Selangor and Kuala Langat where certain employees well versed in land matters hid the original applications.

“After some months they submit a new application with names of family members to get the same plot of land,” he said at a morning gathering with civil servants here yesterday.

An incensed Dr Khir said the culprits would be sacked if three complaints were made against them.

He told civil servants gathered at the Dewan Seri Jugra in Telok Datok that, in Dubai, if an officer received three complaints against him, he would be sacked.

“If I were to do this here, there might be no one left (in the government departments),” he said.

However, Dr Khir said he wanted those involved in such irresponsible acts to repent.

Meanwhile, he said the recent salary increase for civil servants was generous and he wanted all civil servants in Selangor to improve the delivery system and be transparent.

“We do want civil servants who look for solutions instead of sweeping things under the carpet. Discard the tidak apa attitude,” he said.

Dr Khir also advised Selangor assemblymen to submit infrastructure requirements as the state planned to allocate RM10mil for each constituency.

“We also want the assemblymen to reach out to the community and identify those who are living below the poverty line so we can offer them aid,” he said.

Pay Rise: Civil servants can do better

NST

By: Azmi Atan, Petaling Jaya

I WANT to see whether the promises made by Cuepacs that public servants will raise productivity and reduce graft will be met after the government announces the salary revision.

While civil servants are generally doing their job, there are many weaknesses.

Can Cuepacs guarantee that the public would be quickly served when they come to government departments and agencies? If the public calls, will the phone calls be promptly answered?

I believe that while saying "yes" is easy, doing it is not.

While I don’t want to generalise that all civil servants are unproductive, it is not easy to be rid of old habits, even if their salary has been revised.
And what happens if the desired quantum is not granted? I fear civil servants will become more unproductive. While there are many good civil servants who give their best, there is a significant number who frustrate the rakyat.

I hope the government will also monitor the Land Office. It is hard to do business there unless you know somebody, or engage runners who deal with certain officers there.

I have heard stories of people having to wait months or years to change their land titles or make simple amendments.

Land Office staff also cannot be pressed or pressured as they dictate terms.

Some officials there are making extra money by expediting certain files. That is why certain applications are quickly approved and some take months or years.

If money changes hands, then the matter will be quickly resolved. This may sound harsh, but go to the Land Office and witness the working environment there.

I have mentioned only one agency. I may not be totally right, but I want to know whether civil servants would be better public servants after the salary revision.

The people have been deprived of good services at some agencies for too long. These are the people whose vote will help the government in the general election.

At the same time, I must commend a great number of civil servants for their dedication and hard work. These are the people who make us thankful and proud.

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