KUCHING, July 31 2026: The governance system of the Sarawak Civil Service has been strengthened through the implementation of a new reporting mechanism that requires all Certified Integrity Officers (CeIOs) to report directly to the Sarawak Integrity and Ombudsman Unit (UNIONS).
Sarawak Government Secretary Mohamad Abu Bakar Marzuki said that this approach allows every non-compliance issue to be identified and dealt with more transparently, in addition to reinforcing the culture of integrity within the organisation.
“I have instructed that CeIOs must report directly to UNIONS, not just to the head of department. UNIONS will report directly to me to ensure that any non-compliance issues can be corrected.
“As the head of the Sarawak Civil Service, I will always support efforts to ensure that integrity is institutionalised as an organisational culture. We must serve as an example to other colleagues and work as a team because integrity is crucial to ensure that every action taken meets the needs of the people and provides the best level of service,” he said at the closing of the Sarawak CeIO Summit 2026 last night.
He explained that efforts to strengthen integrity must be implemented comprehensively through more effective reporting mechanisms, in addition to strengthening the internal audit function to ensure that every policy, procedure and work practice consistently complies with the regulations set.
He also called on all Sarawak Civil Service employees to embrace the 3R approach, namely Revisit, Rethink and Recharge, to ensure that policies, guidelines and work procedures are always relevant to technological developments, including artificial intelligence (AI), as well as increasing the people's expectations of the government delivery system.
Meanwhile, Deputy Minister in the Premier’s Department (Integrity and Ombudsman) Dr Juanda Jaya stressed that the culture of integrity must be practised comprehensively and not merely focused on procedural compliance or corruption prevention efforts alone.
He said that integrity is foundational in building the people's trust in government institutions and ensuring that every development policy and initiative can be implemented effectively.
Accordingly, he urged each Certified Integrity Officer (CeIO) to continue to improve their competence, become proficient in the law and understand the source of their agency's authority in order to strengthen the integrity management function.
"This is important so that CeIO is able to identify and deal with non-compliance risks more effectively, including facing new challenges such as cybercrime and digital fraud," he said.
He added that Sarawak currently has a total of 206 CeIOs, one of the highest in Malaysia, with nearly 50 competency development programmes implemented throughout 2019 to 2026 involving an investment of approximately RM1.9 million.
The three-day programme brought together CeIOs from various ministries, departments and government agencies to strengthen competence, share best practices and empower the culture of integrity and governance in the Sarawak Civil Service.
Also present were Deputy Sarawak Secretary (Administration) Felicia Tan and Sarawak Integrity and Ombudsman Unit Director (UNIONS) Wan Muhammad Wan Rahman.
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