Govt considering special public holiday on July 8 - Ali Hamsa

The government will consider announcing Friday, July 8, as a special holiday for states working on Friday, said Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Ali Hamsa.

He said the matter must go through the consultation stage first before any decision could be made.

"I am not sure if the answer is positive or negative. Previously, there has never been a special (peristiwa) holiday for civil servants," he told reporters after a special meeting of the Chief Secretary to the Government with members of the Congress of Unions of Employees in Public and Civil Services (Cuepacs), today.

Cuepacs president Datuk Azih Muda, in his speech before the meeting, had suggested that the government considered announcing Friday, July 8, as a special holiday.

Azih described the day as being an unproductive day for civil servants and could save on electricity while the civil servants would give less focus on their work as the first day of Syawal was expected to fall on July 6, that is Wednesday.