PUTRAJAYA: The government has set up a secretariat to overcome administrative issues and those related to the country's expenses, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said.
Anwar said the Secretariat for the Rationalisation Study of Federal Statutory Bodies will start its duties immediately as one of the government's exercises in reforming the civil service.
"I recently decided that the Finance Ministry, representing the entire government, will establish a bilateral committee to update the rationalisation of statutory bodies.
"There are too many statutory bodies, and their functions overlap, which complicates operations.
"This rationalisation aims to reduce spending due to excessive expenditure and waste," Anwar said at the Finance Ministry's monthly assembly here today.
Present were Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan and Treasury secretary-general Datuk Johan Mahmood Merican.
Anwar said that the reform measures also involve closely monitoring all appointments of chairpersons and board members in statutory bodies, government-linked companies (GLCs), and government-linked investment companies (GLICs) to ensure proper financial governance.
He said this was because some individuals in these positions view them as rewards and display extravagance, even though the funds come from the people and the nation.
"That's why this monitoring must be more thorough. When a new chairperson is appointed, the first thing they do is decide on the car and renovate the office, even though the office is already in good condition.
"For the Finance Minister's office, I said there's no need to change or renovate, as some of us forget that this is a trust," he said.
Anwar also said that another reform measure is that no one should hold too many positions.
He said that those serving on the board of directors should also receive training, including in financial management.
As such, he said, all these agencies and statutory bodies will have a representative from the Finance Ministry to oversee financial management and good governance.
He also said any representative from the ministry in a statutory body who is found to have failed to report any financial regulation breaches will be barred from future appointments to that body.
"I want to remind you, if there's any confusion in the selection of agency members, they will be barred from holding any board position afterwards, ensuring accountability.
"Otherwise, if we don't enforce this, the same situation will continue," he said.