The F.A.S.T.E.R principle - flat, agile, streamlined, tech-enabled, efficient and resilient - need to be grasped by every civil servant in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, said Chief Secretary to the Government (KSN) Tan Sri Mohd Zuki Ali.

He said every department should work 'flatter', which is to be open without being bound by outdated rules and constrained by bureaucracy.

"For example, in the process of getting information between ministries and departments, we cannot work in our cocoon alone. When something requires a quick solution, we should immediately sit down and discuss as a public service family," he said.

Mohd Zuki said this when officiating the KSN@Merdeka programme with civil servants in conjunction with the national month and fly the Jalur Gemilang celebration at Dataran Putra, yesterday.

Also present were Public Service Department director-general Tan Sri Mohd Khairul Adib Abd Rahman and Ministry of Communications and Multimedia secretary-general, Datuk Suriani Ahmad.

He said the 'agile' principle in the execution of work was so that civil servants were more flexible and responsive in the implementation of work systems and processes.

Mohd Zuki said civil servants need to be more adaptive and sensitive to current changes and needs of the people and stakeholders, especially in the COVID-19 pandemic situation.

"For example, in the face of the situation after the Recovery Movement Control Order (RMCO), what is the form of new service delivery that needs to be done so that it is in line with the changing environment?

"If during the RMCO period we can only process 100 applications in three days, maybe after RMCO we can process 100 applications in a day or a few hours only," he said.

He said the services provided to the people should be tech-enabled so that digital technology is utilised due to the changing times driven by the industrial revolution 4.0 in the delivery of public services.

Mohd Zuki said every implementation of the initiative must be done efficiently and effectively, especially in a situation where the country is still in the period of economic recovery because every mistake made means a loss that has to be borne by the government.

"If we overlook any target group in providing an incentive, then it results in a loss in terms of slow spending. In fact, it can also arouse the anger of the people towards the civil service. This we must avoid," he said.

Mohd Zuki said the principle of resilient means that every civil servant must remain strong together with the civil service leadership, to realise the strategies outlined by the government.

He also reminded civil servants to adhere to the values of integrity, togetherness, dynamics, interaction and service as the basis in ensuring the sustainability of public service based on first class culture in achieving the Shared Prosperity Vision 2030.

On the KSN@Merdeka programme, Mohd Zuki said the feeling of love for the country should be displayed through flying of the Jalur Gemilang at homes, offices and on vehicles during the national month celebration.

He said the theme of National Day and Malaysia Day this year 'Malaysia Prihatin' (Malaysia cares) coincided with the government's aspirations where all citizens are united in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.

He said the spirit of 'Malaysia Prihatin' has actually been embedded in the souls of every citizen which has been expressed through love, affection and love for the country.

"As a result, harmony and peace in the country has prevailed until now. We are able to live in full tolerance regardless of race, religion and political inclination," he said.

Earlier, Mohd Zuki participated in the Kawah Prihatin Merdeka programme at Masjid Putra involving activities such as the distribution of asyura porridge and donation of nutrition packs to asnaf representatives.

The programme was organised by the Malaysian Association of Wives of Civil Servants and Women Civil Servants (Puspanita) in collaboration with the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia (KKMM), the Malaysian Information Department (Japen), and the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (Jakim), with 300 volunteers to prepare the special porridge.

-- BERNAMA