JPA Daily Buzz - Edisi 52 2026

page 3 Our visit to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) in Wellington gave us deep insight into crisis governance. Their approach is clear: Calm; Structured; and Prepared. One statement stayed with me, “we work 8 hours, the rest can wait until tomorrow unless it is a disaster”. What made this experience even more meaningful was what happened after. A day after we left New Zealand, Wellington was declared in a state of emergency led by Group Controller Carrie McKenzie. I paused because she was someone we had met. What we saw was not theory. It was a real system functioning when it mattered most. We also met Dr. Fahimi Ali, a Malaysian serving as a Disaster Strategic Planner at NEMA. He is also active in the Malay community in Wellington. It made me proud because wherever we are we still carry who we are. Another aspect that stood out was how they approach the human side of disaster management. Victims are not left too long in temporary conditions. They are moved to more comfortable spaces to recover. Not just physically but emotionally. That is where I realised in crisis management, efficiency alone is not enough. The system must understand people, not just manage them. A developed nation is not built by systems alone but by the people within it. Their values. Their discipline. Their sense of responsibility. In the end, every system reflects the people behind it, including ours. This journey was not just about New Zealand. It was about people and perhaps what matters most is not what we saw there. But what we are willing to change when we return. Dr. Diyana Hassim Head of Corporate Communications Public Service Department