KOTA KINABALU: Sabah has been ranked as the 10th most popular destination within the Asian region, yet its capital city is still struggling with litterbugs.
Lamenting the situation in the city after launching the Puspanita City Division’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) held near here yesterday, Kota Kinabalu Mayor Datuk Abidin Madingkir said that it was imperative that everyone played their part to keep the city and State clean.
“About 3.4 million tourists are expected to come to Sabah this year in conjunction with the Visit Malaysia Year 2014 and Visit Sabah Year,” he said.
Unfortunately, the mentality of some folks had made it very difficult to keep the city clean, he said.
“There are proper garbage bins in place throughout the city, but people still litter. There are bins near the bus stands, yet there are still irresponsible people who, upon disembarking from the bus, throw their garbage on the ground instead of using the bins,” he lamented.
He said that they should assist City Hall cleaners by not throwing garbage indiscriminately.
He then urged the relevant parties to act on the issue.
At the same time, Abidin also commented on the sorry sight at Api-Api, near here.
“There is so much garbage in the area that the management of the car park areas at the venue had to be taken over by DBKK Holdings,” he said.
Meanwhile, Kota Kinabalu Puspanita chairperson, Datin Florence Malangkig said that the branch was established three years ago.
“I am proud to see the association developing. Last year was a meaningful year as various activities have taken place,” she said.
These include talks on cancer, fund raising for the Puspanita Fund, visits to orphanages and so on.
She added that Puspanita also took part in endeavors to promote cleanliness within the city along with City Hall.