Don’t treat rivers, sea as giant dumpsites – Mayor
KOTA KINABALU: Do not treat rivers or the sea as giant dumpsites, urged Mayor Datuk Yeo Boon Hai.
Yeo hoped that villagers who live along the coastline or rivers do not throw rubbish into the water.
He said dumping rubbish into the sea or rivers may be the easiest way to dispose trash, but everyone has the responsibility to conserve the environment.
Yeo said this to the media after officiating at the beach cleaning activity organized by Hunger Movement along the beach at Tanjung Lipat here yesterday.
Some 400 participants, including students from Sabah Tshung Tsin Secondary School (STTSS), SM Kian Kok, Kota Kinabalu High School and SM Stella Maris as well as a group from MCA and a Penampang District Council member took part in the activity.
He said ensuring the cleanliness of the environment was a shared responsibility of the community, rather than the sole duty of the authority.
Yeo said the Kota Kinabalu City Hall (DBKK) had come up with the ‘SAC’ concept, an acronym for ‘Stop Littering, Advise, and Collect Rubbish’.
He said the negative behaviour of littering would also be passed down to the next generation or have an adverse impact on other areas if not curbed.
“If we start (the habit of maintaining cleanliness) at home, our environment will be clean no matter where we go.”
On the event, Yeo said DBKK has carried out several gotongroyong activities with different organizations.
“This is the third gotongroyong we have with Hunger Movement.”
He hoped that the Hunger Movement would organize this programme more often to attract more participation from the public.
Meanwhile, Hunger Movement president Billy Lim said the beach cleaning yesterday was one of the biggest events that it has organized so far.
“The main purpose of this event is to raise awareness among the public regarding the changes in our environment.”
He said the public could not just count on DBKK to clean the environment.
While Sabah has the best sunset, unfortunately the people did not have firstclass mentality in taking care of our beach and environment, he said.
He shared a true story of two young sisters in Bali, who initiated a campaign against plastic bags when they were only at the ages of 10 and 12.
“Bali produces 650 cubic meters of plastic garbage a day which is equivalent to a 14-storey building.
“They founded a nongovernmental organization named Bye Bye Plastic Bag and started a petition which successfully gathered over 100,000 signatures.
“The Bali governor has signed a Memorandum of Understanding to help the people of Bali say no to plastic bags by January 2018.”
Lim said another example was a young man in India who started off by picking up rubbish alone on the beach of Mumbai week after week.
“At the end, he successfully organized a beach cleaning which attracted 12,000 volunteers and they cleaned up the Mumbai beach in two years.”
He said the Hunger Movement’s persistence had gained attention as more and more people were joining in its beach cleaning activities.
“We are truly grateful to see more and more young people ready to contribute to society.
“We hope that this issue and the true meaning behind this event can reach out to all Sabahans.
“This is our beach, our home, our responsibility.”
Hunger Movement is a local volunteer group that helps the underprivileged regardless of their race, religion, and nationality.
Also present was DBKK Environmental Health Department director Robert Lipon.