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Key Highlights

  • No raise for 'lazy' civil servants

  • Sanusi apologises to PM

  • Press freedom score nosedive


No raise for 'lazy' civil servants

The major pay hike for civil servants later this year won't be across the board.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said civil servants who are "lazy" and problematic would be excluded from the exercise.

However, he estimated that only about five percent of government officers were bad apples.

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Sanusi apologises to PM

Kedah Menteri Besar Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor apologised to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and cabinet ministers for making inappropriate remarks in the past.

He made the apology, and a call to move forward, at a Madani Aidilfitri celebration in Kedah on Saturday night.

This is a marked turn for the combative menteri besar, whose relationship with Putrajaya is considerably more terse than that of his counterparts in Kelantan and Terengganu.

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Press freedom score nosedive

Malaysia placed 107th in Reporters Without Borders (RSF) 2024’s World Press Freedom rankings, falling 34 spots from 73rd last year.

The RSF cited the government blocking news sites critical of Putrajaya as a reason for the latest ranking.

Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said the ranking decline wasn't "too bad", and stressed the need to balance press freedom with curtailing slander and misinformation.

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