PARLIAMENT  Defending the Malaysian civil service from criticisms in the annual Auditor-General's Report, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Shahidan Kassim today went on to praise the service for helping creating billionaires and ensuring the country's development.

Shahidan told the Dewan Rakyat during Question Time that the number of offenders as stated in the audit report was a "small minority" compared with the 1.5 million civil servants in the country.

"I thank them for developing this country and for creating billionaires like T Ananda Krishnan and Lim Goh Tong," Shahidan said in response to a question from Othman Abdul (BN-Pendang).

"The number of offenders is very small compared with the 1.5 million civil servants we have. They have helped spearhead the harmony in this country," Shahidan said.

He also said punitive action was taken on 225 civil servants following findings in the audit report, even though only one person was fired from the job.

Other actions included freezing promotions or ordering the civil servants to pay a surcharge for their negligence, which in total amounted to around RM86,000, he said.

Shahidan added that 124 of them were still facing disciplinary action, with their punishments not decided yet, while 945 civil servants had been sent for “corrective” courses.

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