Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak today spoke of the need for every civil servant to be open-minded to ensure attainment of the government's objectives and agenda.

He said an open-minded attitude was necessary at a time when the government had to brave challenges to successfully implement the 1Malaysia concept incorporating the 'People First, Performance Now' policy, Government Transformation Programme (GTP), New Economic Model (NEM) and 10th Malaysia Plan (2011-2015).

"This open-mindedness is not restricted to the Aidilfitri open house but encompasses also the thinking and methodology suitable to the times," he said at the Aidilfitri celebration of the Prime Minister's Department in Putrajaya.

Also attending the event were Najib's wife Rosmah Mansor, Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin and his wife Norainee Abdul Rahman, and chief secretary to the government Mohd Sidek Hassan.

Najib said government departments and agencies should not give preference purely to the raising of financial allocations but practise the concept of value management so that the government objectives could be achieved with smaller allocations.

He also said that they should not just look at creating more posts to achieve an objective but should utilise the available officers and staff while emphasising productivity.

"It is needless to look at the number of activities (implemented) but focus on the outcome. It is also not proper for us to only consider the interests of our own departments but to look at the needs of the government as a whole," he said.

Najib said that by adopting such open-mindedness, they would shine as dedicated civil servants and, at the same time, raise their contribution to the country.

The prime minister also said that the unique Aidilfitri open house tradition should be maintained as it could foster camaraderie and brotherhood in the people.

- Bernama