ENHANCING URBAN GOVERNANCE THROUGH THE

IMPLEMENTATION OF LOCAL E-GOVERNMENT:

A CASE STUDY OF KOTA KINABALU CITY HALL

(DBKK)

BY

SILMY SAFURA BINTI MOHD. JAYA

A dissertation submitted in fulfilment of the requirement for

the degree of Master of Human Sciences in Political Science

Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and

Human Sciences

International Islamic University Malaysia

SEPTEMBER 2017

ii

ABSTRACT

This case study examines the implementation of local e-Government services by Kota

Kinabalu City Hall (DBKK), in terms of its implementation degree, customers’

satisfaction level and the relationship between its implementation and urban

governance enhancement. The implementation of e-Government has significantly

transformed public service delivery. The implementation of local e-Government by

DBKK is part of the local authority’s initiative to improve Kota Kinabalu’s urban

governance quality. Yet, since its implementation, the local e-Government service is

plagued by one serious problem, which is the lack of online features in comparison to

other local authorities. Research findings reveal that DBKK offers numerous online

services, such as the online feedback form, e-Services, e-Compound and e-Tax.

Overall, the public perceives the local e-Government services offered by DBKK as

satisfactory and there is a positive relationship between the local e-Government

implementation and urban governance improvement.

iii

البحث ملخصABSTRACT IN ARABIC

تدرس هذه الدراسة تنفيذ الخدمات الإلكترونية للحكومة المحلية ببلدية كوت كينابالو (DBKK من حيث درجة تنفيذها ومستوى رضا العملاء والعلاقة بين تنفيذها وتعزيز الإدارة )

الخدمات العامة. وتنفيذ الحضرية.لقد أدى تنفيذ الحكومة الالكترونية إلى تحول كبير في تقديم( هو جزء من مبادرة DBKKالخدمات الالكترنية للحكومة المحلية ببلدية كوت كينابالو )

السلطة المحلية لتحسين جودة الإدارة الحضرية لكوت كينابالو، إلا أن خدمة الحكومة ونية مقارنة الإلكترونية المحلية منذ تنفيذها تعاني من مشكلة كبيرة وهو قلة الخدمة الالكتر

بالسلطة المحلية الأخرى. تكشف نتائج الدراسة أن بلدية كوت كينابالو تقدم العديد من الخدمات الالكترونية مثل استمارة الكترونية للتغذية الراجعة، وخدمات الكترونية، ونظام

لية الكتروني لدفع الغرامة والضريبة. وبشكل عام، يرى الجمهور أن الخدمات الإلكترونية المحالتي تقدمها بلدية كوت كينابالو مرضية، كما أن هناك علاقة طيبة بين تنفيذ الحكم المحلي

وتحسين الإدارة الحضرية.

iv

APPROVAL PAGE

I certify that I have supervised and read this study and that in my opinion; it conforms

to acceptable standards of scholarly presentation and is fully adequate, in scope and

quality, as a dissertation for the degree of Master of Human Sciences in Political

Science.

……………………………………..

Norhaslinda Binti Jamaiudin

Supervisor

……………………………………..

Rohana Binti Abdul Hamid

Co-Supervisor

I certify that I have read this study and that in my opinion it conforms to acceptable

standards of scholarly presentation and is fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a

dissertation for the degree of Master of Human Sciences in Political Science.

……………………………………..

Rabi’ah Binti Aminudin

Examiner

This dissertation was submitted to the Department of Political Science and is accepted

as a fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Human Sciences in

Political Science.

……………………………………..

Khairil Izamin Bin Ahmad

Head, Department of Political

Science

This dissertation was submitted to the Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and

Human Sciences and is accepted as a fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of

Master of Human Sciences in Political Science.

……………………………………..

Rahmah Binti Ahmad H. Osman

Dean, Kulliyyah of Islamic

Revealed Knowledge and Human

Sciences

v

DECLARATION

I hereby declare that this dissertation is the result of my own investigation, except

where otherwise stated. I also declare that it has not been previously or concurrently

submitted as a whole for any other degrees at IIUM or other institutions.

Silmy Safura Binti Mohd. Jaya

Signature…………………....………. Date …….……………….

vi

COPYRIGHT

INTERNATIONAL ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY MALAYSIA

DECLARATION OF COPYRIGHT AND AFFIRMATION OF

FAIR USE OF UNPUBLISHED RESEARCH

ENHANCING URBAN GOVERNANCE THROUGH THE

IMPLEMENTATION OF LOCAL E-GOVERNMENT: A CASE

STUDY OF KOTA KINABALU CITY HALL (DBKK)

I declare that the copyright holder of this dissertation are jointly owned by the

student and IIUM.

Copyright © 2017 Silmy Safura Binti Mohd. Jaya and International Islamic University Malaysia. All

rights reserved.

No part of this unpublished research may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system,

or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,

recording or otherwise without prior written permission of the copyright holder

except as provided below

1. Any material contained in or derived from this unpublished research may

be used by others in their writing with due acknowledgement.

2. IIUM or its library will have the right to make and transmit copies (print

or electronic) for institutional and academic purposes.

3. The IIUM library will have the right to make, store in a retrieved system

and supply copies of this unpublished research if requested by other

universities and research libraries.

By signing this form, I acknowledged that I have read and understand the IIUM

Intellectual Property Right and Commercialization policy.

Affirmed by Silmy Safura Binti Mohd. Jaya

……..…………………….. ………………………..

Signature Date

vii

DEDICATION

This dissertation is dedicated to my beloved parents

viii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

All triumph is because of Allah s.w.t, the Most Gracious and the Most Merciful.

Thanks to Him, because of His blessing, I succeeded in completing this dissertation.

First and foremost, I would like to thank and express my indebted gratitude towards

my supervisor, Dr. Norhaslinda Binti Jamaiudin, who has been kind, dedicated,

patient, supportive and very helpful throughout my journey in completing this

dissertation.

Also, I would like to thank and express my immense appreciation towards my

co-supervisor, Dr. Rohana Binti Abdul Hamid and the Head of Political Science

Department, Dr. Khairil Izamin Bin Ahmad for their help and support. Furthermore, I

would like to extend my deep gratitude towards the lecturers in the Department of

Political Science for their concern, advice and support.

Most importantly, I would like to thank and express my indebted appreciation

towards my dad, Mohd. Jaya Bin Saidin, and my mum, Latifah Binti Miji, who have

always encouraged me and given me moral and financially support throughout the

duration of my study. Not forgetting my siblings and my best friends, for their

personal moral support and help.

ix

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Abstract ....................................................................................................................ii Abstract in Arabic .....................................................................................................iii

Approval Page ..........................................................................................................iv Declaration ...............................................................................................................v

Copyright .................................................................................................................vi Dedication ................................................................................................................vii

Acknowledgements ..................................................................................................viii List of Tables ............................................................................................................xii

List of Figures ..........................................................................................................xiii List of Abbreviations ................................................................................................xiv

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ....................................................................1 1.1 Background of the Study ..........................................................................1 1.2 Statement of the Problem .........................................................................5

1.3 Research Questions ..................................................................................7 1.4 Research Objectives .................................................................................7

1.5 Significance of the Study .........................................................................8 1.6 Literature Review ....................................................................................9

1.6.1 Global Context................................................................................9 1.6.2 Malaysian Context ..........................................................................13

1.7 Theoretical Framework ............................................................................16 1.8 Operationalization of Concepts ................................................................19

1.9 Research Methodology.............................................................................20 1.9.1 Research Design .............................................................................20

1.9.2 Unit of Analysis ..............................................................................21 1.9.3 Sampling ........................................................................................21

1.9.4 Data Collection: Mixed Methodology .............................................22 1.9.4.1 Questionnaire ......................................................................23

1.9.4.2 Semi-Structured Interview ..................................................23 1.9.4.3 Secondary Data ...................................................................24

1.9.5 Data Analysis .................................................................................24 1.9.6 Reliability Test ...............................................................................25

1.10 Chapter Summary ..................................................................................26

CHAPTER TWO: AN OVERVIEW OF KOTA KINABALU CITY HALL

(DBKK) ...................................................................................................................27 2.1 Introduction .............................................................................................27 2.2 Historical Background of Sabah ...............................................................27

2.3 Geographical Location .............................................................................29 2.4 Political Structure ....................................................................................32

2.4.1 The Ruling Government..................................................................32 2.4.2 The State Government Structure .....................................................34

2.4.3 The Local Government Structure ....................................................36 2.5 Economic and Social Structures ...............................................................38

2.5.1 Economic Growth ...........................................................................38

x

2.5.2 Economic Sources ..........................................................................39

2.5.3 Ethnicity .........................................................................................40 2.5.4 Immigrants .....................................................................................41

2.5.5 Religion ..........................................................................................41 2.6 Kota Kinabalu City Hall (DBKK) ............................................................42

2.6.1 Historical Development ..................................................................42 2.6.1.1 Jesselton Sanitary Board to Kota Kinabalu Municipal

Council (MPKK) ................................................................42 2.6.1.2 Kota Kinabalu City Hall (DBKK) .......................................43

2.6.2 Organisational Structure of DBKK .................................................45 2.6.3 Administration Areas ......................................................................46

2.6.4 Services Offered .............................................................................48 2.7 Conclusion ...............................................................................................49

CHAPTER THREE: THE IMPLEMENTATION OF LOCAL E-

GOVERNMENT BY KOTA KINABALU CITY HALL (DBKK) .......................50 3.1 Introduction .............................................................................................50

3.2 Qualitative Data .......................................................................................50 3.3 Kota Kinabalu City Hall (DBKK) ............................................................51

3.4 The Implementation of DBKK’S Local E-Government Services by

ITD ..........................................................................................................52

3.4.1 Background of the Information Technology Department (ITD) .......52 3.4.2 Resources .......................................................................................55

3.4.2.1 Staff ....................................................................................55 3.4.2.2 Capital ................................................................................56

3.4.2.3 Vendor ................................................................................56 3.4.3 Services Offered .............................................................................56

3.5 Issues and Challenges ..............................................................................58 3.5.1 Development Phase ........................................................................58

3.5.2 Implementation Phase .....................................................................59 3.6 Performance Evaluation ...........................................................................60

3.7 Achievements of Kota Kinabalu City Hall (DBKK) .................................62 3.8 Conclusion ...............................................................................................64

CHAPTER FOUR: THE LOCAL E-GOVERNMENT SERVICES

PROVIDED BY KOTA KINABALU CITY HALL (DBKK) ...............................66 4.1 Introduction .............................................................................................66

4.2 Data Collection ........................................................................................66 4.3 Demographic Information ........................................................................67

4.4 Customer Satisfaction on Local E-Government Services Provided

by DBKK ................................................................................................70

4.5 Urban Governance Improvement through Local E-Government

Implementation by DBKK .......................................................................80

4.6 Relationship between Local E-Government Services

Implementation and Urban Governance Improvement..............................86

4.6.1 Positive Reviews (Compliments) ....................................................90 4.6.2 Negative Reviews (Complaints) ......................................................93

4.7 Conclusion ...............................................................................................99

xi

CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUSION ........................................................................101 5.1 Introduction .............................................................................................101 5.2 Findings Summary ...................................................................................101

5.3 Suggestions for Further Improvement ......................................................105 5.3.1 Planning .........................................................................................105

5.3.2 Monitoring ......................................................................................105 5.3.3 Improvement ..................................................................................106

5.3.4 Performance Evaluation ..................................................................106 5.4 Overview of E-Government Implementation from the Islamic

Perspective ..............................................................................................107 5.5 Limitations of the Study ...........................................................................108

5.6 Recommendations for Future Studies .......................................................108

REFERENCES .......................................................................................................111

APPENDIX A: INTERVIEW QUESTION .......................................................119 APPENDIX B: QUESTIONNAIRE ...................................................................120

xii

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1.1 Comparison of Online Services Provided by DBKK, DBKU,

PPJ and MPSA 6

Table 1.2 Reliability Statistic for Customer Satisfaction and Urban

Governance Items 25

Table 2.1 Sabah’s Administrative Structure 31

Table 2.2 Sabah Local Government Structure 38

Table 2.3 Historical Development of DBKK 43

Table 2.4 List of DBKK’s Mayors 44

Table 2.5 Organisation Chart of DBKK 46

Table 2.6 DBKK’s Administration Areas 48

Table 3.1 Background Information of the Respondents 51

Table 4.1 Demographic Information 68

Table 4.2 Customer Satisfaction Items 72

Table 4.3 Urban Governance Items 81

Table 4.4 Correlation between Customer Satisfaction and Urban

Governance 87

Table 4.5 Findings Summary of the Relationship between Customer

Satisfaction and Urban Governance 89

Table 4.6 Positive Reviews (Compliments) regarding the Local E-

Government Implementation in Enhancing Urban Governance 90

Table 4.7 Positive Reviews (Compliments) related to Customer

Satisfaction and Urban Governance Items 93

Table 4.8 Negative Reviews (Complaints) regarding the Local E-

Government Implementation in Enhancing Urban Governance 94

Table 4.9 Negative Reviews (Complaints) related to Customer

Satisfaction and Urban Governance Items 97

xiii

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1.1 New Public Management (NPM) Model 19

Figure 1.2 Triangulation Mixed Method Design 23

Figure 2.1 Sabah State Government Structure 34

xiv

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

ABM Activity Based Management

BN National Front (Barisan Nasional)

BNBCC British North Borneo Chartered Company

BSC Balanced Scorecard

CM Chief Minister

CRM Customer Relationship Management

DBKK Kota Kinabalu City Hall (Dewan Bandaraya Kota Kinabalu)

DBKU Commission of the City of Kuching North (Dewan Bandaraya Kuching

Utara)

DUN State Legislative Assembly (Dewan Undangan Negeri)

E- Electronic

EIMS Environmental Improvement Management System

ELX Electronic Labour Exchange

ESPKB Planning System and Budget Control

FPX Financial Process Exchange

GOE Generic Office Environment

HRMIS Human Resource Management Information System

HSC Malaysian Higher School Certificate

ICT Information and Communication Technologies

IT Information Technology

ITD Information Technology Department

KK Kota Kinabalu

KPI Key Performance Indicator

LAN Local Area Network

LCD Liquid Crystal Display

LDP Liberal Democratic Party

MAMPU Malaysian Administrative Modernisation & Management Planning

Unit

MBO Market-based organization

MBSA Shah Alam City Council (Majlis Bandaraya Shah Alam)

MCE Malaysian Certificate of Education

MPKK Kota Kinabalu Municipal Council (Majlis Perbandaran Kota Kinabalu)

MPSJ Subang Jaya Municipal Council (Majlis Perbandaran Subang Jaya)

MSC Multimedia Super Corridor

MyClear Malaysian Electronic Clearing Corporation Sdn Bhd

NPM New Public Management

PBRS United Sabah People’s Party (Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah)

PBS United Sabah Party (Parti Bersatu Sabah)

PhD Doctor of Philosophy

PPJ Putrajaya Corporation

R&D Research and Development

SGWC Sabah Government Web Competition

SPA Public Services Commission of Malaysia

SPANS Sabah State Public Service Commission (Suruhanjaya Perkhidmatan

Awam Negeri Sabah)

xv

SPP II Project Monitoring System

TQM Total quality management

UMNO United Malays National Organisation

UPKO United Pasokmomogun Kadazan-Dusun Murut Organization

1

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

The Information Age has brought positive changes to many governments. The

Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) revolution in this context has

significantly improved the government’s representativeness, transparency, and public

service delivery via the Electronic Government (e-Government) application. The e-

Government is seen as a strategic initiative in the modernization of public service.

According to many scholars, the e-Government implementation may indeed enhance

transparency, efficiency, and effectiveness of public service delivery to citizens and

businesses as well as improve the administrative processes at all tiers of governance

(Gil-Garcia & Pardo, 2005; Yildiz, 2007; Muhd Rosydi, 2013).

It has also been perceived as an effective platform in establishing democratic

participation among citizens (Davies, 2015), solving many administrative problems,

thus improving the urban governance quality in many countries (Akhilesh, 2013). In

relation to governance, the dissimilarity between rural and urban governance can be

seen in terms of public service accessibility as well as governance quality (Jairo et. al,

2015), urban areas surpass rural areas in both dimensions due to the availability of

technological development. In this context, urban governance refers to the utilization

of accessible resources and technology that used by the government in the optimal

approach to offer a better quality of public service delivery to the citizens, who are

living in the urban area (Hamzah & Azmizam, 2008). The e-Government

implementation has closely been associated with the urban governance improvement

2

that encourages the government to strategically plan and manage a city’s daily affairs

and day-to-day operations (UN-HABITAT, 2002; Linkola, n.d.).

Looking at the same goals, the Malaysian government took a step forward by

introducing the Multimedia Super Corridor (henceforth MSC) in August 1996. The

Malaysian government advocated seven innovative flagship applications, namely: (1)

e-Government, (2) Multipurpose Card, (3) Telehealth, (4) Smart School, (5) R&D

Clusters, (6) e-Business and (7) Technopreneur Development (Muhammad Rais &

Nazariah, 2003; Sidek, 2012; Muhd Rosydi, 2013). These long-term ICT initiatives

were intended to ensure the betterment of public service delivery, thus improving the

urban governance quality at federal, state and local governments’ spheres. The

importance of e-Government implementation to urban areas include saving costs, time

and effort, improvement of public service efficiency, accessibility of government

services and information within 24 hours as well as reduction of administrative

manual procedures (Kaylor et. al, 2001; Alsheri & Drew, 2010).

As one of the key components of the MSC flagship applications, the e-

Government implementation is vital to improve the internal management, to boost the

information flow and processes within the government and to enhance the

government’s communication with citizens and businesses (Muhammad Rais &

Nazariah, 2003; Abdul Raufu, 2009; Azmizam et al., 2010). The main objectives of

the e-Government implementation are to enhance the public service quality and to

increase the administrative task efficiency (Azmizam et al., 2010). In response to

these, seven pilot projects under the e-Government implementation have been

introduced, these include: (1) Project Monitoring System (SPP II), (2) Human

Resource Management Information System (HRMIS), (3) Generic Office

Environment (GOE), (4) Electronic Procurement (e-Procurement), (5) Electronic

3

Services (e-Services), (6) Electronic Labour Exchange (ELX) and (7) e-Syariah. Such

initiatives illustrate the government’s attempts in improving public service delivery in

the Malaysian public sector (Muhammad Rais & Nazariah, 2003; Abdul Raufu, 2009;

Sidek, 2012; Muhd Rosydi, 2013).

Widespread e-government applications can be seen through the electronic

services (e-Services) implementation, especially at the local government level. The

local e-Government implementation is part of the government’s initiative to transform

the urban governance quality in Malaysia (Reddick, 2010). Enhancing urban

governance in this context would promote the public’s democratic participation in

decision making and ensure effective management of the local government’s daily

affairs and operations. In the case of Malaysia, there are different local government

levels, which are: (1) City Hall (Dewan Bandaraya) or City Council (Majlis

Bandaraya), (2) Municipal Council (Majlis Perbandaran), (3) District Council (Majlis

Daerah) and (4) special and amended local authority, such as Development Authority

and Corporation (Siddiquee, 2013; Penang Monthly, 2016). The classification of local

government levels is determined by the local authorities’ population size, total yearly

income and boundary width (Penang Monthly, 2016).

Concerning the differences of local authorities, the City Hall or City Council

has more than 500,000 sizes of population and more than RM100 million total annual

income, while the Municipal Council’s total population is more than 150,000 people

and total yearly income exceeds RM20 million and on the other hand, the District

Council has less than 150,000 total population and less than RM20 million total

annual income (Bwalya & Zulu, 2012; Penang Monthly, 2016). Regardless of the

dissimilarities, all local authorities carry out similar responsibilities include providing

basic public facilities, ensuring environmental protection, granting licenses and

4

enforcing the law, monitoring public health checks and cleanliness as well as

monitoring public services and socio-economic growth (Bwalya & Zulu, 2012;

Siddiquee, 2013). The local authorities’ source of power is defined by the state

governments and administered by the Ministry of Housing and Local Government.

With the exception for three local authorities, namely Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and

Labuan (located in the Federal territories), their source of power is under the purview

of Federal government and managed by the Ministry of Federal Territories and Urban

Well-Being (Commonwealth Local Government Forum, n.d.; Siddiquee, 2013; Weiss,

2015; Penang Monthly, 2016).

Varying degrees of online services have been introduced by the local

authorities; these include e-Housing, e-Complaint, e-Licensing, e-Payslip, e-

Compound and much more. Since its inception, the local e-Government

implementation has encountered many constraints. In fact, several City Councils and

Municipal Councils have successfully provided many important online services, such

as payment, complaint, submission, status and information (Azmizam et al., 2010),

but many are still left behind due to several common reasons include low quality of

technological infrastructure, lack of funding for ICT infrastructure, lack of ICT expert,

and lack of coordination among the staffs (Razlini, 2012). As consequences, these

weaknesses have constrained the local authorities to implement high quality online

services and only able to provide limited services.

Similarly, Kota Kinabalu City Hall (henceforth DBKK) has provided online

services only for information access, complaint and checking purposes. Such

standardization of the local e-Government services by the local authorities at all levels

is necessary. Hence, their capacity in providing these services has a tremendous

impact on the local communities.

5

This research evaluated the local e-Government implementation in DBKK

based on the New Public Management (NPM) model. This study rigorously examined

the implementation degree of the local e-Government initiative by DBKK, measured

the customers’ satisfaction level of the online services offered by DBKK and assessed

the relationship between the local e-Government implementation and urban

governance enhancement.

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The increasing use of ICT in the public sector has transformed the government’s

service delivery through the e-Government implementation. By providing online

services, the public sector is expected to receive more accessible and competent public

service delivery (Azizan & Fazli, 2010). Online services such as e-Housing, e-

Complaint, e-Licensing, e-Compound, e-Tax and much more have been offered

especially at the local government level but at varying degrees generally due to the

availability of the financial resource, ICT proficiency, and technological

infrastructure. Therefore, this leads to the unstandardization of the local e-Government

implementation, as some local authorities have managed to provide all features of the

online services, while others have not. Standardized features in the local e-

Government implementation are important because the quality of online services

offered would influence the local authorities’ performance in the public service

delivery, thus signifying the improvement of urban governance quality by the local

government.

Related to the local e-Government services provided by DBKK, there is a gap

between DBKK’s local e-Government services in comparison to other local

authorities, namely the lack of online features, such as payment and submission.

6

Based on an initial observation from the official websites, it shows that the online

services provided by several local authorities, for examples the Shah Alam City

Council (MBSA), the Putrajaya Corporation (PPJ) and the Commission of the City of

Kuching North (DBKU) are far better than Kota Kinabalu City Hall (DBKK).

Table 1.1 Comparison of Online Services Provided by DBKK, DBKU, PPJ and

MPSA

No. Online

Services

Provided

Local Authorities

Kota

Kinabalu

City Hall

(DBKK)

Commission

of the City of

Kuching

North

(DBKU)

Putrajaya

Corporation

(PPJ)

Shah Alam

City Council

(MBSA)

1. Payment

2. Feedback

3. Submission

4. Status

5. Information

Total 2 4 5 5

Note: = available; = not available

Source: Azmizam et al. (2010); Laman Web Rasmi Dewan Bandaraya Kota Kinabalu,

(n.d.); Official Website of the Commission of the City of Kuching North (n.d.);

Official Portal of Perbadanan Putrajaya (n.d.); Official Website of Shah Alam City

Council (n.d.)

Table 1.1 shows the online features provided by four local authorities, namely

DBKK, DBKU, PPJ, and MPSA. Obviously, DBKK’s online services are far from

satisfactory in comparison to other local authorities. The lack of online features

implies the weak implementation of local e-Government services by DBKK. Flaws in

the implementation may hamper the local government’s capacity in meeting public

7

needs. This subsequently affects customer satisfaction towards the online services

provided by DBKK. Thus, this study in this context is crucial to evaluate the degree of

local e-Government services implementation from the implementer’s experience and

to examine the public perception on their satisfaction towards the quality of local e-

Government services offered by DBKK.

1.3 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

This study will answer the following research questions:

1. What is the degree of local e-Government services implementation by

DBKK?

2. How do local communities perceive the local e-Government services

offered by DBKK?

3. What is the relationship between local e-Government services

implementation by DBKK and improvement in the management of Kota

Kinabalu’s daily affairs (urban governance)?

1.4 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

The research objectives are as follows:

1. To evaluate the degree of local e-Government services implementation by

DBKK.

2. To examine local communities’ perception on local e-Government

services provided by DBKK.

3. To identify the relationship between local e-Government services

implementation by DBKK and improvement in the management of Kota

Kinabalu’s daily affairs (urban governance).

8

1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

There is a limited amount of literature available that examines online services

provided by the local authorities in the Malaysian context. In fact, very few studies

have been conducted on the implementation of local e-Government in Peninsular

Malaysia (Azmizam et al., 2010; Kaliannan & Halimah, 2010; Razlini, 2012;

Siddiquee, 2013), however, no similar studies have been done in Sabah and Sarawak.

In this regard, an evaluative study on local e-Government services by DBKK still

remains unknown. Therefore, this study is important to evaluate the degree of

implementation and customer satisfaction on local e-Government services provided by

DBKK. This evaluative study would produce fruitful information, especially on the

implementation of online services by DBKK, thus significantly contributing to the

existing literature on local e-Government services in Malaysia. In terms of

methodological significance, this study employs the mixed methodology approach to

discover problems faced by DBKK. Both qualitative and quantitative methods have

been used to evaluate the implementation of local e-Government services from the

implementer’s experience and also customers’ satisfaction level from the public

perception. The outcome of this study could be a good source of reference for local

government in Malaysia to improve future implementations of local e-Government

services with in consideration of local context and condition. As compared to

Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah has different context and setting, therefore this study’s

result also would contribute to the improvement of public administration in Sabah as

well as Sarawak.

9

1.6 LITERATURE REVIEW

1.6.1 Global Context

The e-Government development in the Information Age has brought massive

transformation to a government’s operation. Widespread e-Government

implementation has a substantial impact on a government’s service delivery,

transparency, accountability and urban governance levels. Many types of research

within this area have acknowledged ‘best practices’ of governance after the

implementation of e-Government in their countries.

As for the advantages, a study by Kaylor et al. (2001) reveals that the e-

Government implementation had significantly enhanced information sharing,

increased public participation, and also ensured effective management. Related to the

widespread practice of e-Government services, the study found that the e-Government

development in several American cities has improved government transparency and

decisional processes. The study had chosen 38 cities within Ann Arbor, Michigan’s

population range to compare the local e-Government implementation. This benchmark

study compares the e-Government practices between these cities based on several

online features, such as online services for the purposes of payments, registration,

permits, customer services, licenses, documents and applications, e-Procurement

service and interactive functions like images, audio, video, and communication.

(Kaylor et al., 2001).

Based on the experiences of several developing countries, namely Australia,

Canada, France, Germany, United Kingdom and the United States of America in the

implementation of e-Government services, numerous possible advantages have been

identified by Ndou (2004). Some of the advantages include improvement of service

delivery quality and efficiency, reduction of costs, assurance of transparency and