Malaysians need to be brave to reprimand litterbugs - Zuraida

The Housing and Local Government Ministry is going to move a new campaign called Berani Tegur (Dare To Reprove) soon, in its effort to battle litterbugs in the country. 

Its minister Zuraida Kamaruddin (photo, above) said members of the public should start cultivating a culture where they dare to speak up against those who commit such unhealthy practices. 

"I only need about 10 percent of Malaysians to have this attitude that dares to reprove those who litter and whole Malaysia would become clean. 

"I am going to launch this campaign to urge the public not to cower when they see something is wrong, and those who are on the receiving end should also not get angry," she told reporters after launching a community programme titled 'Little River Festival 2019' in Taman Melawati, Kuala Lumpur this morning. 

The inaugural festival was organised by the Taman Melawati chapter of ‘Friends of Sungai Klang' society. 

Zuraida said everyone cannot rely on enforcement drives by the authorities alone when it comes to ensuring the cleanliness of the country. 

"If we want to rely on law enforcement officers, they can only get to so many (offenders). 

"This has to be done through awareness. It is going to take a long time (to change the attitude) if we don't raise the awareness. 

"There are not enough enforcement officers in the country. We have to be the enforcers ourselves. It has to come from the people of Malaysia," she said. 

In her speech earlier, Zuraida applauded volunteers in the clean-up initiative for their efforts. 

However, she also reminded them that while what they are doing is good, the initiative might not work if environmental pollution by others still persists. 

She said everyone should start playing their roles to remind each other against destroying nature. 

Meanwhile, the chapter's founder Mansor Ghani in his welcoming speech said they aimed at improving the situation along the Klang River by providing river amenities, and organising activities to clean and beautify the area. 

He said the group is working to take care of the river trails and paths and wants to make the riverside a recreational area where the public can go for a picnic, jogging, and cycling.

The budget for their activities comes from donations by the volunteers as well as corporate social responsibility funds from the corporate sector. - Mkini