Baljit: Termination must be done by mutual consent

GEORGE TOWN: The service termination of some 17,000 civil servants in the country must be done by mutual consent, a Gerakan leader said.

Gerakan legal and human rights bureau chief Datuk Baljit Singh said this was stated clearly in the contract.

“The termination cannot be done with only one party agreeing to it. It needs the consent of both parties. Furthermore, it is a fixed term contract which only ends at a specific time, which is December 2019 for most of them,” he said yesterday.

Baljit also urged the Bar Council to look into the matter since the council always fights for human rights and civil liberty.

“In the spirit of Ramadan, I hope the Government will reconsider its decision on this,” he said.

On May 16, Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said some 17,000 civil servants, who are political appointees, would be axed in a bid to reduce government spending.

He said there were too many contract officers, but low-wage employees such as drivers would be spared and that some would also be assigned to other roles.

On Tuesday, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng confirmed that Malaysia’s debt was now above RM1 trillion, much higher than the previous government’s figure.

Lim, however, assured that Malaysia’s economic fundamentals remained strong.