Selangor residents hint of protest votes over uncollected rubbish
SHAH ALAM, May 20 — Several residents interviewed have lamented the poor rubbish collection in Selangor and hinted that the issue could drive the people to cast protest votes against the PKR-led state government in the next general election.
They argued that incidents of uncollected rubbish have disturbed their peace of mind and asked the Selangor government to come up with a good mechanism to ensure that its decision to place the management of cleaning services under the local authorities is carried out effectively.
A resident of Taman Bandar Bukit Puchong, who wanted to be identified as Steve Victor, 46, said that as a tax payer, he deserved better waste collection service from the contractors appointed by the state government through the local authorities.
“Before, when Alam Flora handled waste collection and disposal, the collection was scheduled for three times a week. Now, after the Selangor government took over the task through the local authorities, the garbage truck only comes once a week if we are lucky enough.
“At times, I had to dispose my own household garbage as I do not anticipate the garbage truck to turn up regularly
“Rubbish collection is not a petty issue and should be given due consideration by the state government. I think the issue may drive the people to go for protest votes against PKR if it remains unresolved,” he told Bernama.
The Selangor government took over garbage collection and public cleansing responsibilities from concessionaire Alam Flora Sdn Bhd in October last year.
Another resident from the neighbourhood, Abdul Rahim Ibrahim, 52, shared Steve’s sentiments. Dogs sometimes ploughed through the uncollected rubbish and there was also the high risk of diseases like dengue spreading, he said, adding that Selangor had the highest number of dengue cases. He also said that people living elsewhere could be dumping their rubbish on the heaps of uncollected trash, worsening the situation.
Vimala Nair, a resident of SS7, Kelana Jaya, claimed that the garbage truck only comes once a week to her place compared with three times when Alam Flora handled waste collection. She said that if waste was not properly managed, especially excreta and liquid and solid waste, it could pose serious health hazards.
“Uncollected garbage can lead to the spread of infectious diseases. Unattended waste lying around attracts flies, rats and other creatures that in turn spread diseases,” she said. M. Selventhiran, a resident of 4th Mile, Jalan Kampung Jawa, Klang, said that of late, the issue of uncollected garbage had become a major item in the string of complaints lodged by the people of Selangor, especially from Kampung Jawa.
He claimed that the residents in the Kampung Jawa area had to bear with foul smells, unsanitary conditions and environmental pollution as heaps of garbage had been left uncollected for weeks.
“The local councillors in charge of the area are only busy giving political speeches and fail to observe whether the contractors are doing their job.
“The Selangor government should do something about this as it would have a serious impact on the outcome of the election,” said Selventhiran, adding that the PKR-led state government also failed to fulfill its promise of giving 20 per cent discount on the assessment.
Selventhiran, who is president of Kelab Perpaduan Insan Selangor, claimed that some contractors won the tender to collect garbage although they did not have the capacity in terms of vehicles and workers.
He said what was seriously lacking were people on the ground to check whether the contractors had collected the waste according to schedule without the need for residents to lodge complaints. Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said yesterday improper waste management was among the factors for the big number of dengue cases in Selangor. — Bernama
