Kedah government firmly opposes a statement by the opposition that the civil service will be trimmed if they form the central government after the next general election.

Kedah Menteri Besar Azizan Abdul Razak said the state government was not thinking of trimming the number of civil servants in the state but instead increasing the size of the civil service in Kedah.

"When the population increases, the number of civil servants should also increase accordingly, not decrease the number.

"The question of maximising the power of civil servants is another matter, but the needs and priorities are to meet the demands of the people," he told reporters in commenting on the statement from DAP information secretary Tony Pua.

Pua was reported in a Chinese daily recently as saying the party would trim the civil service and give the boot to inefficient government employeees if the opposition pact came into power.

Meawhile, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nor Mohamed Yakcop described the suggestion to reduce the number

of civil servants as being disrespectful to them.

He said the DAP was not being appreciative of civil servants who had been involved in the development and progress of the country.

"The role of civil servants in the transformation of the country from a poor to modern nation should be appreciated by all," he told reporters after chairing a meeting of the Penang Bumiputra Development Council today.

- Bernama

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