Embrace New Media To Engage Stakeholders, Public Service Told

FotoBERNAMA

The public service must tap on the new media as a platform to engage its stakeholders, especially the youth, said Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Dr Ali Hamsa.

Ali, who is the newly-elected president of the Commonwealth Association for Public Administration and Management (CAPAM), said the public service must not hold back by refusing to join this revolution.

"Change is inevitable, and we have to transform in order to remain relevant in today's world.

"Now, more than ever, the dynamics in the global arena and the advent of social media make it incumbent on governments to do nothing less than their best in discharging their duties in public administration," he said when opening the inaugural Media Forum at the CAPAM 2014 biennial conference at the Putrajaya International Conference Centre today.

The forum, entitled "Engaging the Commonwealth" and held at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre (PICC), is jointly organised by the Office of the Chief Secretary to the Government and the Malaysian National News Agency, Bernama.

Some 600 participants, comprising mostly mass media and communication students from public and private institutions of higher learning, media practitioners, academicians, top public service employees from the Commonwealth countries as well as representatives from embassies and high commissions attended the forum.

Ali said that in the context of the Commonwealth, both the traditional and new media had played a crucial role in promoting economic development, good governance and civil societies.

As such, he urged the public service to join hands with the media fraternity in exploring contemporary and future issues in the print, electronic and the new media industry.

He said the aim of such collaboration was to exchange ideas and information on the state-of-the-art research in media and communications so that the public service could interact with the stakeholders and the people quickly and effectively.

On the forum, Ali said it was also intended to generate interest among youths to better understand the Commonwealth and CAPAM.

He noted that youths, being the biggest users of the new media, also formed the majority of the people in public service, and CAPAM had proven to be an invaluable linkage that bound the Commonwealth together, particularly the young people.

"Today's youths, who inevitably are tomorrow's leaders, can share best practices and enhance their networking in the Commonwealth and beyond.

"Together, we can do much more to promote CAPAM and the Commonwealth. And the media can certainly help us to spread the word further and faster," Ali said.

Among the speakers at the forum were John Spencer, Trustee, CPU Media Trust from London; Media Prima Bhd chairman Tan Sri Johan Jaafar and President of the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Commonwealth Society Datuk Mohamad Feisol Hassan.

Other panelists included Datuk Chamil Wariya, Chief Executive Officer of the Malaysian Press Institute; Datuk Ahmad A. Talib, Group Advisor, Corporate Social Responsibility, of Media Prima Bhd and Datuk Wong Sai Wan, Editor-in-Chief, Malay Mail Sdn Bhd.

By Voon Miaw Ping

-- BERNAMA