KOTA KINABALU: Downsizing exercises will be left to the government-linked companies (GLCs) to decide, said Sabah Finance Minister Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun.
Although he did not confirm any layoffs, Masidi reminded staff to question whether they should continue staying or leave an organisation based on their contributions.
'Sometimes, having the right number of people will eventually cut down a lot of expenditure.
"This will be translated into savings, and savings can sometimes contribute towards more revenue and profit, but we will leave it to the companies to decide,' he said, adding the management should examine whether they have an 'oversupply' of manpower.
Masidi spoke to the media after the Finance Ministry's Night at a hotel here last night.
Earlier in his speech, he mentioned that the state government had issued guidelines to GLCs focusing on generating profits.
The guidelines would include a GLC monitoring unit and an expert panel from private and public sectors to assist in better managing companies, especially those facing problems.
Last year, Masidi said that out of about 100 GLCs in the state, only a few were making money.
He also warned about shutting down non-performing GLCs.
During the winding-up speech for the state's 2024 Budget, he had said there would be initiatives such as assessing the qualification of the board of directors, implementing a scorecard system, implementing a Merit Demerit System, establishing an investment and loan management committee, and collaborating with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
Masidi had also added that the state government stipulated that state government companies must pay at least 10 per cent of the company's profits to the state government as dividends.
Present at the event were his Assistant Finance Minister Tan Lee Fatt and Permanent Secretary Datuk Mohd Sofian Alfian Nair.
