KUALA LUMPUR: The cabinet has unanimously backed the decision to cancel a plan by a ministry and agency to send 68 government officials to an exhibition in Berlin.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said that no minister or political party leader within the unity government had disputed any of his governance decisions in the past two years.
"Over these two years, my team in the unity government has not seen a single minister or leader challenge our decisions.
"Firstly, any project must go through a tender process to prevent leakages. When I learned of a government agency planning to send 68 people to a party in Berlin, I received full cabinet support to cancel it. This is unprecedented in the history of this prime ministerial office," he said while chairing the Forum Ilmuan Madani, titled "Peralihan Tenaga untuk Kesejahteraan Masa Depan Negara."
Present at the forum were Chief Secretary to the Government Datuk Seri Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar, Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek, Human Resources Minister Steven Sim, and Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Federal Territories) Dr Zaliha Mustafa.
Anwar also said the need for firm action to prevent similar practices in the future.
"Why do I have to take this stand? Because I have my colleagues' full support. While ministers may also want to participate, we need to manage it effectively. For instance, if an agency wants to send 20 officers while only eight are needed for a meeting, we must put a stop to this," he said.
He also urged cabinet ministers to embrace new ideas and avoid outdated thinking.
"Without infusing new ideas, we risk becoming too comfortable and constrained in our approaches, which hampers our growth. We must explore new disciplines, including digitisation, artificial intelligence (AI), engineering, and mathematics."
On Sept 12, Anwar's administration cancelled the planned overseas trip for the 68 officials as part of efforts to curtail excessive public spending.
This decision is part of broader reforms aimed at enhancing accountability and addressing leakages within ministries, departments, and agencies.