KKMM agencies must be prepared for policies towards COVID endemic phase - Annuar

CYBERJAYA: Agencies under the Communications and Multimedia Ministry (KKMM) must be prepared to introduce suitable policies and programmes as country heads towards the endemic phase of COVID-19, said its Minister Tan Sri Annuar Musa.

He said ministry staff need to accept the fact of living with COVID-19 and management during an endemic would obviously be different.

"Our government must be able to meet the aspirations of the people because we are in a very challenging situation. We have been caught in a pandemic situation for far too long, (and) it has affected the lives of the people at all levels.

"Let us restore the cheers to Malaysians, return the hopes and regain our self-confidence. We must develop the country as a nation that is full of confidence because we can progress and move forward," he told the media after visiting the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), here today.

Also present were Deputy Communications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Zahidi Zainul Abidin, KKMM secretary-general Datuk Seri Mohammad Mentek and MDEC chairman Datuk Dr Rais Hussin Mohamed Arif.

Annuar, at the same time said he was confident that all 11 agencies under KKMM were capable of becoming high performance agencies in fulfilling the aspirations of the people after a series of briefing sessions with the leadership of the agencies involved.

He said improvements would continue to be made from time to time in line with the trust given by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob who has put emphasis on the achievement of every ministry and government agency.

"A high performance government is the key to everything. We do not want to become an unstable government or a government that faces endless problems," he said.

Meanwhile, Annuar said he took note of the proposal from the Animation Association of Malaysia (ANIMAS) which suggested that Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) increase its airtime for local animation programmes.

Annuar said he had discussed the matter with KKMM secretary-general to identify some aspects that could be improved.

"It is not just about providing more space and opportunities to local animated films to be broadcast on television stations, but I also want to see it as a whole.

"I will hold discussions on the matter with industry players, especially those in the broadcasting field," he said.

ANIMAS president Amir Hamzah was reported to have said that local animation content providers faced difficulties in bringing their products overseas as it was difficult for them to meet the requirements set by international distributors who wanted these animated films to be screened in their home country first, either on television stations or cinemas.

He said it was difficult to fulfill the condition due to the limited animation slots on local television stations.

-- BERNAMA