Why must a Minister do the work of a GLC CEO?
Parliament 18.10.05 (3)
Two issues of government (including GLC or government-linked companies) efficiency cropped up during the second day of the 2006 Budget debate winding-up.
Referring to the contretemps over Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) power supply problems in Malacca last month, involving Cabinet Ministers and the Cabinet, I asked the Minister for Energy, Water and Communications Lim Keng Yaik whether there was not “something very wrong” where comparatively minor issues like proper and efficient TNB supply in Malacca had to be taken to the Cabinet for a directive to be issued before things can move.
At first Keng Yaik denied that Cabinet authority had to be invoked to resolve the Malacca TNB contretemps. I then produced the New Straits Times report of 15.9.05 headlined “Cabinet directs TNB to take action”, which reported:
Later in his winding-up, Keng Yaik dug another hole for himself when after expressing fulsome agreement with MPs’ complaints about the service, efficiency and commitment of TNB staff, Keng Yaik said he would be holding a dialogue session with the TNB state managers soon to impress on them the need for better service culture, although he conceded he has not been able yet to “catch” the root cause of the TNB malady – accompanied by his expressive gesture of closing his right hand in a “catch” mode.
This again prompted my question whether it should be the job of a Minister to try to diagnose and “catch” the pulse of the malady in TNB, or whether this should be the job of the CEO of TNB, one of the leading GLCs in the country, with the TNB CEO required to “catch” and conquer the problems afflicting TNB or face the consequences of transfer out or pay cut.
I also offered advice to Keng Yaik that in his dialogue with the state TNB managers, he should impress on them to develop the service culture of “how to say yes rather than how to say no” in response to customer needs.
The other problem is the deplorable “maintenance” standards, or to be more correct, the drastic collapse of the “maintenance” culture in all departments of government in the past few decades, afflicting not only TNB but lofty institutions like Parliament, as illustrated by the shameful “toilet” problem haunting and hounding Parliament in the past two weeks.
Parliament just spent RM99 million for renovation, but its roof not only leaks, its toilets are a shameful sight. Samy Vellu claimed that the toilets were like new brides after they were completed under the renovation, but they were spoilt because of the lack of proper maintenance.
I take Samy Vellu’s explanation with a large pinch of salt, as technically the RM99 million Parliament renovation has not been completed and the Public Works Department must still bear full responsibility for any breakdowns or shortfalls. There is not only the problem of lack of maintenance culture, there is the even bigger problem of dubious contracting for sub-standard goods and services in public works contracts.
It is most embarrassing and unseemly to have to broach the subject of toilets in the august chambers of Parliament when more weighty issues of the people and nation cry out for attention - except that it has so far-reaching import as to subject the fragile doctrine of separation of powers pertaining to Parliament to suffer another grievous assault, with the ludicrous creation of a new post equivalent to “Parliament Director-General for toilets” with higher pay and more powers than Setiausaha Parlimen, traditionally the head of Jabatan Parlimen since Merdeka, just as in the case in all other “First World” Commonwealth parliamentary institutions.
Two issues of government (including GLC or government-linked companies) efficiency cropped up during the second day of the 2006 Budget debate winding-up.Referring to the contretemps over Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) power supply problems in Malacca last month, involving Cabinet Ministers and the Cabinet, I asked the Minister for Energy, Water and Communications Lim Keng Yaik whether there was not “something very wrong” where comparatively minor issues like proper and efficient TNB supply in Malacca had to be taken to the Cabinet for a directive to be issued before things can move.
At first Keng Yaik denied that Cabinet authority had to be invoked to resolve the Malacca TNB contretemps. I then produced the New Straits Times report of 15.9.05 headlined “Cabinet directs TNB to take action”, which reported:
KUALA LUMPUR, Wed. - Tenaga Nasional Berhad has been asked to immediately address the problem of power supply faced by manufacturers in Malacca.Confronted with the evidence, Keng Yaik gave the lame excuse that it was misreporting by the press!
Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said today Energy, Water and Communications Minister Datuk Seri Dr Lim Keng Yaik was told to submit a report to the Cabinet on power supply problems raised by investors at the Southern Region Investment and Trade Dialogue in Malacca yesterday.
"The Cabinet discussed the issue today and feels that connections required by new investors should be done expeditiously and once connected, there must be no interruption of supply.
"Any interruption means economic or business losses to them," he said after opening the Global Public Policy Conference 2005 at the KL Convention Centre here.
Later in his winding-up, Keng Yaik dug another hole for himself when after expressing fulsome agreement with MPs’ complaints about the service, efficiency and commitment of TNB staff, Keng Yaik said he would be holding a dialogue session with the TNB state managers soon to impress on them the need for better service culture, although he conceded he has not been able yet to “catch” the root cause of the TNB malady – accompanied by his expressive gesture of closing his right hand in a “catch” mode.
This again prompted my question whether it should be the job of a Minister to try to diagnose and “catch” the pulse of the malady in TNB, or whether this should be the job of the CEO of TNB, one of the leading GLCs in the country, with the TNB CEO required to “catch” and conquer the problems afflicting TNB or face the consequences of transfer out or pay cut.
I also offered advice to Keng Yaik that in his dialogue with the state TNB managers, he should impress on them to develop the service culture of “how to say yes rather than how to say no” in response to customer needs.
The other problem is the deplorable “maintenance” standards, or to be more correct, the drastic collapse of the “maintenance” culture in all departments of government in the past few decades, afflicting not only TNB but lofty institutions like Parliament, as illustrated by the shameful “toilet” problem haunting and hounding Parliament in the past two weeks.
Parliament just spent RM99 million for renovation, but its roof not only leaks, its toilets are a shameful sight. Samy Vellu claimed that the toilets were like new brides after they were completed under the renovation, but they were spoilt because of the lack of proper maintenance.
I take Samy Vellu’s explanation with a large pinch of salt, as technically the RM99 million Parliament renovation has not been completed and the Public Works Department must still bear full responsibility for any breakdowns or shortfalls. There is not only the problem of lack of maintenance culture, there is the even bigger problem of dubious contracting for sub-standard goods and services in public works contracts.
It is most embarrassing and unseemly to have to broach the subject of toilets in the august chambers of Parliament when more weighty issues of the people and nation cry out for attention - except that it has so far-reaching import as to subject the fragile doctrine of separation of powers pertaining to Parliament to suffer another grievous assault, with the ludicrous creation of a new post equivalent to “Parliament Director-General for toilets” with higher pay and more powers than Setiausaha Parlimen, traditionally the head of Jabatan Parlimen since Merdeka, just as in the case in all other “First World” Commonwealth parliamentary institutions.
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