KUALA LUMPUR: There is no set allocation or quota based on race or ethnicity for appointment into all positions in the civil service.
Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Sabah, Sarawak Affairs, and Special Functions) Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali, in a parliamentary written reply, said all Malaysian citizens, regardless of race or ethnicity, have an equal opportunity to be considered in an open and fair competition.
"For the Public Service Commission (PSC), the method of hiring and appointing officers into the public service is being done transparently, based on the candidates' merit and competency.
"There is no allocation or any quota set for any specific race or ethnicity for appointments to all positions in the civil service," he said.
He said other than PSC, other agencies that have the authority to hire in the civil service are the Education Service Commission; the Judicial and Legal Service Commission, the Police Force Commission, the Armed Forces Council, state Public Service Commissions, as well as statutory authorities and local authorities.
He added that last year, PSC received a staggering 1,279,494 applications and called up 129,498 eligible candidates for interviews based on the service scheme and assessment criteria.
"Out of these, 88,897 candidates attended the interviews, with 20,762 candidates hired."
He said those appointed comprised the Malays with 16,126 (77.7 per cent); Chinese with 1,014 (4.9 per cent); Indians with 991 (4.8 per cent); Bumiputera Sabah with 1,199 (5.8 per cent); Bumiputera Sarawak with 887 (4.3 per cent); Orang Asli with 45 (0.2 per cent) and other ethnicities with 500 (2.4 per cent).
Armizan was responding to a question by S. Kesavan (PH-Sungai Siput), who questioned the government's effort to increase the recruitment and appointment of Indian candidates to seven per cent, in line with the composition ratio of the Indian population in Malaysia.
Kesavan said there are 41,168 Indian civil servants, or 4.15 per cent of the total number of civil servants at the federal level.
Armizan added that the PSC has consistently established strategic collaborations with agencies managing the affairs of specific communities, such as the Malaysian Indian Transformation Unit (Mitra), the Orang Asli Development Department (Jakoa), the higher education institutions and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
"Ongoing initiatives by PSC include engagement programme, career day, customer engagement day and outreach programmes, which aim at enhancing public understanding in Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah, and Sarawak regarding the recruitment into public service.
"These initiatives provide guidance and encourage all to be part of the civil service. The collaborative efforts and outreach programmes also simultaneously enhance public understanding of the transparency in the recruitment and selection process based on merit and competence."