
DBKK urges public cooperation via ‘My City, My Responsibility'
Published on: Wed, Jul 02, 2025
By: Crystal E Hermenegildus Text Size: Kota Kinabalu: City Hall (DBKK) held the closing ceremony of the My City, My Responsibility 1.0 (MCMR) awareness campaign, last Sunday. The ceremony was officiated by the Deputy Director General (Operations) of DBKK, Robert Lipon (pic), representing Mayor Datuk Seri Dr Sabin Samitah. It marked the culmination of a campaign that was launched on Feb 3. He said this campaign is proof of City Hall's commitment to raising public awareness about the collective responsibility to maintain the cleanliness of the city. 'The objective of this campaign is to educate the community to be more responsible in maintaining the cleanliness of the city and making it a clean, green and liveable city, in addition to increasing the public's awareness of the importance of preserving and conserving the environment. 'This is in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDG 17), namely Goal 3 (Good Health and Well-Being), Goal 6 (Clean water and sanitation), Goal 14 (Life in water) and Goal 15 (Life on Land),' he said during the inauguration ceremony at Palm Square, Centre Point. Various events were organised, including the 'MCMR Slogan' TikTok Competition, 'Treasure Hunt' Competition, Colouring and Poster Drawing Competition, Guessing the Amount and Weight of Cigarette Butts Competition, Used Clothes Upcycling Competition, Environmental Quiz, Health and Environment Exhibition, and Kids Fashion Show. In addition, the Household Recycling Competition is being held for the first time to encourage waste separation and recycling practices starting at home. Robert said participating residents have been sending recyclable waste such as plastic bottles, paper, cans, and cooking oil to the Kota Kinabalu Sustainable Centre located at the Community Hall. A total of more than two tonnes of recycled waste have been successfully received in this activity, marking a 100% increase compared to last year. 'This record clearly indicates a significant improvement in public awareness regarding the daily separation of household waste. It also demonstrates the potential for waste materials to serve as a valuable financial resource when managed correctly,' he said. In addition, the Kampungku Bersih challenge was held in conjunction with City Hall's 24th anniversary celebrations. This competition aimed to foster social awareness among villagers in the city through ongoing campaigns and cleaning activities. The winner of the challenge was Kampung Kobuni, with Kampung Binaung and Kampung Kokol securing second and third places, respectively. These villages are now recognised as 'Clean and Green Villages'. 'I hope that the programme held this time will be a good start to creating a quality environment, further achieving the mission and vision of DBKK,' Robert said. Also present to enliven the ceremony were the Leasing Executive for the management of Center Point Sabah Oliver, Lim Kok Fueh; Director of the Solid Waste Management Department as the Organizing Chairman, Leong Tze Fui, and the heads of DBKK departments. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available.
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Daily Express
an hour ago
- Daily Express
City Hall defers move to ban plastic straws: No more bin centres in Sinsuran
Published on: Wednesday, August 20, 2025 Published on: Wed, Aug 20, 2025 By: Sidney Skinner Text Size: Banners about the closure of the four bin-centres in Sinsuran have been put up on one side of these facilities. CITY Hall has deferred a move to ban the use of plastic and polystyrene straws within its rating area. Food operators around the State Capital had initially been told to stop handing out such straws to their customers from October 1 onwards and warned that, in extreme cases, they could wind up having their licences suspended if they failed to comply. Advertisement A spokesman for the agency's Solid Waste Management Department (SWMD) said it still intended to do away with plastic and polystyrene straws in the long term but, for the time being, the ban had been postponed. 'Mayor Dato' Seri Dr Sabin Samitah is still deliberating over when it would be best to begin putting City Hall's plan in action,' he said. 'A further announcement will be made once this decision has been finalised.' Senior officials with the agency, including its Director General of Operations Robert Lipon and SWMD Director Leong Tze Fui, met with 150-200 individuals in the food and related sectors in the first week of June to make them aware of the impending ban. The spokesman said personnel from local plastic manufacturing companies, as well as representatives from the Sabah branch of the Standards and Industrial Research Institute of Malaysia (Sirim) and the Local Government and Housing Ministry were also present during the engagement session. 'By and large, the food operators and hawkers were supportive of our plan. But some asked if we could push back the October 1-start to a later date.' He said City Hall was not the first local authority to prohibit the use of plastic and polystyrene straws in the country. 'Several in Peninsula Malaysia have already made done this, as has the Sarikei District Council in our neighbour state, Sarawak.' The spokesman said plastic and polystyrene straws contained compounds which were harmful to the human body. 'On top of this they cannot be recycled. We want eatery and stall owners to switch to using paper straws or those made from organic material, like corn starch.' He explained that the move to 'zero-ise' the use of these straws was a natural evolution of City Hall's 'No Plastic Bags' policy which was launched last year. Meanwhile, the agency will be doing away with its bin-centres in the Sinsuran area, in a bid to get the public more accustomed to the workings of its 'sistem pelupusan sampah sendiri (SPSS, personal waste disposal system)'. The spokesman said there were four bin-centres servicing this part of the City. 'These structures are due to be demolished early next month,' he said. 'Our staff will be stationed at strategic locations around the shophouses to educate those living and working here on how to get rid of their rubbish under the SPSS.' He said City Hall's compactors parked a designated spot once in the morning and again at night, as part of the system. 'Those in the vicinity bring over the garbage from their respective premises, at these times, to throw in the back of the vehicle.' He said collection-sites had been demarcated on the surface of roads around Sinsuran to indicate where the compactors came to a halt. A majority of the occupants at the different blocks, which comprised the Sinsuran shophouses, were still confused about how the system operated. 'We closed the bin-centres at the beginning of August and strung up banners to inform the public here that they were not supposed to get rid of their rubbish at these buildings. 'Thirty eight SWMD staff worked on shifts between 6am-2am daily till August 10 to try and familiarise those in the area on how the SPSS works. Despite going to all this trouble, bags of waste are still being dumped in front of the bin-centres.' The spokesman warned that those caught red handed getting rid of their refuse in this manner risked being compounded up to RM500, under the agency's (Anti-Litter) By-Laws 1985 (Amendment 2005). The SPSS was nothing new in the City, according to him, with the system having been introduced in Kg Air six years ago and at the Anjung Senja foodcourt in 2022. The spokesman said the agency had noticed a marked improvement in the surroundings at both locations over the intervening period. 'There has been a significant drop in the number of rats running around Kg Air and Anjung Senja. Without the bags of kitchen waste piled up in these centres, or the bits of food strewn haphazardly around these structures, these rodents have essentially been deprived of a major food source.' He said the absence of the rotting refuse had also minimised the nuisance posed by leachate – the foul smelling liquid which drains from, or 'leaches' through, the piles of bagged rubbish. On top of this, he said, acts of vandalism involving the fixtures at the bin-centres in Kg Air and Anjung Senja had also decreased. The mischief-makers had previously taken to burning the communal bins or making away with their wheels, according to him. 'This motivated us to extend the SPSS to Sinsuran. We aim to do the same in Segama and along Jalan Gaya at some point next year,' he said. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. 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The Star
4 hours ago
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The Star
5 hours ago
- The Star
Former rubbish site now a thriving garden in Prai
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