Ahead of the Ayer Kuning state by-election, the candidate named by Barisan Nasional (BN) has been reported as being a Grade DG52 public servant under the Ministry of Education (MoE).
At the same time, he holds the position of Tapah Umno division secretary.
This raises the issue of public servants being actively involved in politics.
The Center to Combat Corruption and Cronyism (C4 Center)stands firm against the involvement of public servants in active politics and calls upon the government to prioritise holistic public service reform in tandem with ongoing efforts to establish an Ombudsman’s office and introduce a right to information act.
What regulations apply to public servants?
According to Regulation 21 of the Public Officers (Conduct and Discipline) Regulations 1993 titled “Taking part in politics”, officers in the top management group (“Kumpulan Pengurusan Tertinggi”) and managerial and professional group (“Kumpulan Pengurusan dan Profesional”) are generally prohibited from actively participating in political activities.
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In particular, the provision prohibits the express showing of support on partisan views, acting as election or polling agents, standing for election for or holding any post in any political party.
However, the same regulation allows support group (now termed implementing group or “Kumpulan Pelaksana”) officers to stand for election or hold any office in a political party with the written approval of their relevant superior.
Thus, the general rule is that public officers are not allowed to actively participate in political activities – especially where such activity entails an express adoption of partisan positions or views.
This makes sense as the public service – the implementing arm of executive policy – must function in a non-partisan manner and must serve the government of the day regardless of political leanings.
Regulation 4 of the 1993 regulations specify that public officers shall at all times give their loyalty to “the country and the Government”.
This principle must be upheld in order to ensure the continuation of a functioning bureaucracy despite changes in leadership.
Questionable exception
That said, the regulation does have a strange exception granted specifically to education service officers of grades DG41 to DG48 (other than principals and officers who hold administrative posts), who are allowed to stand for election or hold office in political parties with the written approval of the secretary general of the MoE.
Officers of grades DG41 to DG48 fall under the managerial and professional group and should therefore be subject to the aforementioned full prohibition.
Why are education service officers conferred this unique indulgence, over and above all other public servants? The risks created by express non-partisanship still exist among members of the education service, and should be managed accordingly.
The BN candidate for the Ayer Kuning by-election is allegedly grade DG52. This would fall within the managerial and professional group and thus subject to the general prohibition on political activities. This grade would also fall outside the exception for education service officers of grades DG41 to DG48.
In other words, the candidate should not have been allowed to hold any position in any political party while also serving as a public servant. Yet he has been the secretary of the Tapah division of Umno.
It is unclear what grade he was when he was granted the position, whether he received any due approval for the position or whether he resigned upon taking the position or when he was fielded as a candidate for the by-election.
If not, he has clearly contravened a disciplinary regulation. Will there be any action taken upon him if this is the case?
C4 Center further emphasises that legality does not equate to ethics; just because something is permissible under law does not make it proper.
The “Madani” (trustworthy) government has initiated the development of a series of reforms aimed at improving public governance, including the introduction of an Ombudsman’s office and introduction of a right to information act.
In connection with these efforts, C4 Center calls upon the government to place due consideration on the role played by the service commissions in executing disciplinary control over public servants. Existing disciplinary regulations must be reassessed and updated to cover a broader range of governance issues, such as political impartiality as shown in this case. – C4 Center
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