FEBRUARY 1 ― Lately there has been public uproar on the appointment of Nurul Izzah Anwar as the senior adviser to our prime minister.

The uproar was made without any attempt by the public to understand and know the rationale behind the decision. Just because the prime minister is her father, the public used the parental connection to cry nepotism.

Nurul has been a four-term Member of Parliament and I am sure she has accumulated vast experience on issues that plague the country.

Furthermore, she accepted the position without taking any salary or allowances. It is a totally free service of her own accord.

We should, on the other, hand congratulate and praise her for offering her services. Her act of providing free service should be emulated and practised in all government departments.

In the industry, there are many experts who are willing to offer their services for free to government departments.

One such government linked department, the Human Resource Development Corporation (HRDC) has formed many Industry Expert Committees (IEC) to assist it in evaluating the quality of training courses provided by registered trainers. Members of the IEC do not receive any salary. They willingly contribute their experience and expertise.

Other government departments should emulate HRDC to form expert committees. Industry experts know fully how excessive regulatory controls affect the operation of companies.

Periodically law makers amend and upgrade laws to regulate industries. Though some departments request the participation from industries, very often views and input from industries are not incorporated into the laws.

With due respect, government officers are trained to enforce laws to the letter without understanding the operation of business.

If IECs are incorporated in the department, the officers could learn from them the enforcement of the law with business considerations.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.