Media Statement by Dr. Tan Seng Giaw in Kuala Lumpur on Friday, 5^th June 2009:

Muhyiddin must take positive steps to keep river basins clean

I call on the Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin to take positive steps such as having effective coordinating river basin committees to keep river basins in the country clean. These should include all water catchment areas where there should be no logging.

Obviously, we require environmental education, teaching the people to cooperate so that they can stop using rivers as dumping sites.

On 5.6.2009 I notice that Muhyiddin talks about river basins being managed and cared efficiently to prevent pollution and destruction of water sources. We shall follow the steps that will be taken to preserve river basins. On 5.6.2009, he mentioned dead rivers such as Sungai Pinang, Sungai Juru, Sungai Skudai, Sungai Tebrau and Sungai Seget. Sungai Klang and its tributaries such as Sungai Batu, Sungai Keroh and Sungai Jinjang are also highly polluted. These are well known for years.

I would like to remind the Deputy Prime Minister that all the catchment areas must be protected. For example, gazetted forest reserve at the Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM), Kepong, is over 1,000 acres and the catchment area, Bukit Lagong, is over 10,000 acres. We have to make sure that there is no more logging within the catchment area. The Selangor State Government must cooperate to stamp out logging in the area.

There are various authorities invloved in the prerservation of river basins and catchment areas such as human resource and environment ministry, state governments and local authorities. We must have effective coordinating body to see that these are efficiently managed and preserved. For example, there have been allocations to clean up Sungai Klang The Environment Department, Kuala Lumpur City Hall (KLCH), and local authorities in Selangor have yet to show that they are truly effective. Meanwhile, KLCH spends millions picking up solid waste from sungai Klang every day.

* Dr. Tan Seng Giaw, DAP National Deputy Chairman & MP for Kepong