IPOH, Dec 3 — Changes in senior civil servants acting for Perak fall under the purview of the Public Service Department (PSD) and the chief secretary to the government, Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal Azumu said today following an abrupt reassignment of the state secretary.

The Perak mentri besar said he did not know the reason for the short notice in which Datuk Zainal Azman Abu Seman was removed as state secretary and transferred to the PSD to be based in the federal administrative capital.

"I’m the mentri besar of Perak… I look after the state and not the Public Service Department,” he told reporters when met at the launching of SkilssMalaysia 2.0:Skills4all; Towards New Collar Jobs at the Perak Industrial Training Institute here.

Ahmad Faizal declined further comment on Zainal’s transfer when pressed.

Zainal was appointed Perak state secretary on October 18, 2018, replacing Datuk Mohd Gazali Jalal, who retired after 35 years in the civil service.

Prior to becoming the state secretary, Zainal was National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) (operations implementation sector) deputy director-general and had served in the public service for 28 years.

However, he had confirmed to national news agency Bernama that he had received a letter ordering his immediate transfer to the PSD.

The letter, dated November 28, stated that Zainal would be placed under a special position in the department from December 1. It was widely circulated on social media, triggering speculation.