OCTOBER 30 — Twenty days ago I wrote that the minister is accountable to Parliament.

It is a convention of a Westminster-style government. The convention holds ministers responsible and accountable for their departments’ actions and performance. 

It is the ministers who must account for the performance and decisions of their departments.

Civil servants, on the other hand, are accountable to ministers. So, they are not accountable directly to Parliament. 

Civil servants do appear before select committees, but they do so to speak on behalf of their ministers rather than in their own right, and are restricted in what they can say. They provide factual information rather than to explain or justify policy decisions or departmental performance.

The convention must be upheld.

It was therefore timely of Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul to issue a stern warning to members of parliament (MPs) against insulting civil servants during debates, stressing that action will be taken against anyone who does so. 

“Take my word for this. Anyone, whether from the government side or the Opposition, who insults civil servants, I will take action. You can comment on politicians, but do not insult the civil service

“Don’t challenge me. Please… some have ridiculed secretaries-general and others, don’t do that,” he said when concluding Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz’s briefing on the Malaysia–United States Reciprocal Trade Agreement (ART) in the Dewan Rakyat on Wednesday (Oct 29).

Criticise the ministers for they are the ones who must be held responsible and accountable to Parliament

Spare the civil servants — for good reasons. They should continue to fearlessly provide ministers with candid advice, including on the constitutionality or legality of proposed actions.

Candid means truthful, frank and straightforward.

Let our civil servants be truthful, frank and straightforward in their advice to the ministers.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.