Ipoh City Council to take stern action against littering, says mayor

IPOH, Jan 7 — The Ipoh City Council (MBI) will impose a RM1,000 compound without any appeal on those involved in littering under the Road, Drainage, and Buildings Enactment 1974, said Ipoh Mayor Datuk Rumaizi Baharin.

He said residents of Ipoh who indiscriminately dispose of rubbish in the city will face stern action from MBI.

Rumaizi condemned the actions of some Ipoh residents who are fond of dumping rubbish recklessly, describing them as lacking compassion and concern for the city of Ipoh to the extent of behaving in such a manner.

He added that the irresponsible actions of some city dwellers have tarnished the image of Ipoh residents, thereby thwarting MBI’s efforts to foster the “Ipoh Bestari Sejahtera” culture, which is the slogan of the local authority.

“It (compound without any appeal, in addition to the community playing a role in preserving moral and civic values) is in line with MBI’s continuous efforts to achieve the goal of making Ipoh the cleanest city in Malaysia and the best local authority in Malaysia,” he said in a statement today.

Rumaizi said that from January 1 to December 31, 2023, MBI had cleaned up 120 illegal dump sites 5,073 times and issued 1,214 compound offers totalling RM498,750.

MBI also conducted 49 community clean-up activities and installed 1,485 small signboards and 185 large “No Rubbish Dumping” signboards around the city of Ipoh.

“This responsibility is not solely the responsibility of MBI but requires the involvement of all parties. Compounding is the last resort after other actions are ignored by the residents of Ipoh,” he said.

Meanwhile, he said 90 per cent of 470 illegal garbage dumping sites were successfully cleaned by MBI from January 1 to December 31, 2023 in realising the local authority’s goal of making Ipoh the cleanest city.

He said MBI also distributed free trash bins to residents in Ipoh, and until last December, a total of 84,547 bins were distributed every weekend according to the rotation of MBI Council Members’ zones since the programme was introduced in 2021. — Bernama