Kota Kinabalu: The Sabah Government must ensure that its recruitment and placement of civil servants should reflect all ethnic groups and religions, Datuk Ewon Benedick (Upko-Kadamaian) told the State Assembly.
“New appointments to the state civil service, including those at federal level in Sabah, should be a representation of all ethnicities and religions. This includes appointments to department heads and promotions,” said the Upko president when debating the 2024 Sabah Budget.
“I was disappointed to hear of complaints about the recruitment at a state department that did not reflect the diversity of Sabah’s ethnicities and religions,” he said.
Ewon proposed that new appointments, promotions and state department head positions should be based on the demographic percentages of ethnicities and religions in Sabah.
“This way, we can foster the spirit of mutual assistance and ignite the true spirit of Sabah Maju Jaya, as exemplified when we signed the Malaysia Agreement in 1963, with leaders of the major ethnic groups in Sabah signing on behalf of Team Sabah,” said Ewon, who is federal Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives Minister.
Issues regarding the state government’s failure to fully utilise annual federal development funds caught the attention of many assemblymen debating the RM5.7bil budget tabled by state Finance Minister Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun on Friday (Nov 24).
