These litterbugs, driven by deep-rooted habits rather than carelessness, refuse to dispose of their waste into rubbish bins, even when such facilities are conveniently available.
Civic-mindedness among this segment of society — unlike for the Japanese, the global model of cleanliness and hygiene — is an alien concept.
The most common offenders are smokers, who casually toss cigarette butts onto sidewalks and gutters.
There are two kinds of chronic litterbug: the wrapper or cigarette butt disposers and people who wilfully dump bags of rubbish by the roadside. Ironically, litterbugs tend to practise strict cleanliness in their homes and cars but view roadsides, parks and rivers as free-for-all dumping grounds.
The littering is also psychological: Kuala Lumpur City Hall or Alam Flora crews who clean up overnight seem to create the illusion that littering is inconsequential, reinforcing the selfish habit.
The proof is in the anti-littering crackdown this year since zero-tolerance enforcement was imposed.
The Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Corporation (SWCorp), the federal agency managing solid waste, recycling and public cleanliness, caught 8,000 litterbugs red-handed across six states.
In Kuala Lumpur, 4,000 individuals were penalised, 72 per cent of them Malaysians and the remaining foreign tourists or migrant workers.
SWCorp has had enough: the shift to mandatory community service and RM2,000 fines aimed at deterring the bad habit has had real and immediate consequences.
Take the case of an Indonesian litterbug, a 36-year-old general worker, jailed for a month for publicly throwing a cigarette butt last February in Stulang, Johor Baru.
Ordinarily, he, like other penalised litterbugs, would have just settled the fine and that would have been the end of it. But he failed to raise the RM1,000 needed for his release, becoming the first individual to be jailed for such a minor offence. SWCorp means business: 59 Malaysians and 48 foreign citizens were penalised to the tune of RM71,550 in fines and community service of two to 10 hours.
The agency has had to be tough: KL City Hall was once forced to clear 9,000kg of rubbish after a single New Year's Eve celebration.
Understandably, public reaction to the jail sentence was incredulity, but this is credible and impartial deterrence regardless of nationality.
Since the consequences of littering have been made tangible, they should imbue responsibility.
It is why Singapore has for decades maintained clean streets and public spaces. The authorities, assisted by adequate supervision, clear procedures and transparent reporting, cannot lose the enforcement momentum.
Still, no amount of municipal cleaning or enforcement can replace a culture where nobody expects someone else to clear their rubbish. - NST
