Page 66 - KSN English Final

CHARTING AND STAYING THE provided are relevant, we as public servants must continuously innovate
COURSE : ACTUALIZING
MALAYSIA’S SUCCESS
irst and foremost, allow me to take this opportunity to thank
the Malaysian Administrative Modernisation and Management
FPlanning Unit (MAMPU), Prime Minister’s Department and
PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) for jointly organising the inaugural Public
Sector Forum this morning. I strongly encourage and fully support such
events, as it exemplifies the close collaborative spirit between the public
and private sector. This enables us to leverage the best from both worlds,
and bring together knowledge and expertise from different viewpoints.
As we are fully aware, the Government has introduced various
programmes to stimulate the economy and improve the delivery of
public services in the path to becoming a high-income developed nation.
Transformation is a critical part of our journey towards 2020, and the truth
is that change is never easy, particularly for a multi-faceted and complex
institution like the Government. However, we are indeed fortunate
that our leaders have the wisdom and foresight to chart our National
Transformation Agenda in a holistic manner, integrating economic factors
with other national priorities to address today’s challenges, while keeping
a firm grasp on the issues ahead.
Learning from other Governments is key in managing the various facets of
transformation. We thank our friends from PwC for sharing with us their
experiences in advising other Governments on their issues and challenges,
including their recommendations on how to address these issues. This
forum offers the opportunity for us to have a frank dialogue on how we
can strategise better, do things differently in leading transformation, and
meet the challenges on the ground.
I am sure that you will agree with me when I say that the rakyat today has
become more knowledgeable and demanding. Quality services delivered
at a faster rate, coupled with prudent management of public funds are
expected. To ensure that these expectations are met and the services
56 Humanising The Public Service : A Compilation of Speeches by the Chief Secretary to the Government
and face the coming future with an inquisitive mind and an open heart.
At the Prime Minister’s Innovation Awards 2013 ceremony last week, our
Prime Minister, Yang Amat Berhormat Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib bin Tun Haji
Abdul Razak commended the public sector for showing that it can rise to
the call of innovation. In his speech, he mentioned that all this while, it
was often thought that the public sector had a tendency to be orthodox
and adopting a conventional approach. However, when the challenge of
innovation was thrown, the public sector proved that it could rise to the
occasion. He cited examples of public sector innovation that we can all
be proud of, namely the establishment of Urban Transformation Centres
(UTCs) and Rural Transformation Centres (RTCs), higher tax collection
by the Inland Revenue Board, and the listing of FELDA, the third biggest
Initial Public Offering (IPO) in the world.
With these positive comments from our Prime Minister, I challenge all
of us here today to not rest on our laurels but instead to continue to
innovate and come up with creative ideas, so we may be able to serve the
rakyat better. Innovation is no longer about technology or new products.
It now involves creating new channels of communication, new processes
and new structures to better meet the rakyat’s demands. It is not only
about determining what needs to be done, but also about effective cost
management. In the era of fiscal austerity, we have to do “more for less”
and at times, “less for less”. Hence, the spirit of “low cost, high impact
and rapid execution” under our National Blue Ocean Strategy (NBOS)
must always be our guiding principle in the provision of services to the
rakyat.
In the eyes of the world, Malaysia is seen as a dynamic and competitive
nation, with a development trajectory that is aimed for success by 2020.
The World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business 2014 report ranked Malaysia at
Equip yourselves with knowledge and immerse
yourselves in the large canvas of subject-matter
that will come your way. Knowledge is power,
but remember that with power comes great
responsibility.
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