A recent post has caught the attention of many Malaysians after a Minister took a jab at his ministry staff members still on their Hari Raya Aidilfitri break.
In a Threads post, Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin shared that he had returned to the office, noting that “some staff are still on their leave.”
Datuk seri mohamed khaled nordin
Khaled later joked that his subordinates were likely taking leave based on how many days they had fasted during Ramadan.
“Today I started going into the office, even though some staff are still on Raya leave. They are probably taking leave based on the number of days they fasted,” he wrote.
Backlash from netizens
While some may have taken the comment with a pinch of salt, most netizens found the joke fell flat, with many even labelling it “inappropriate.”
“Sorry, but jokes like this are inappropriate coming from your page. Every government officer and staff member has their own system for planning and managing annual leave. If your ministry has urgent needs, I believe leave schedules are already arranged as best as possible without affecting the implementation of government policies and operations.”
“You have a record showing you only attended 44 out of 90 parliamentary sessions. Maybe focus on improving your own attendance before criticising others for taking leave.”
“You are coming in early; does that mean you only fasted for three or four days, Minister?”
“There is no need to mock. You only come into the office a few times a year anyway, and most of the work is done by others; it’s basically like being on vacation. Then you get upset when others take their Raya leave to visit their parents back in the village.”
“Why can’t we take leave? Leave is our right, and we are fully entitled to it. There is no point coming to work if operations aren’t running smoothly anyway. Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, is this what government leadership is like? Getting upset when others take leave? If this is the kind of character the government is looking for, tell me how to apply.”
“If you don’t like your staff taking leave, you can always resign. The exit door is always open.”
What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments!
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