I HAPPENED to visit Chinatown in Kuala Lumpur as I have not been to this part of the capital city for quite some time.
This place is bustling with many local and foreign visitors alike, with numerous new trendy cafes and restaurants mushrooming around the well-known shopping attraction of Petaling Street.
However, my visit was somewhat ruined by the sight and stench emanating from piles of rubbish strewn on the pedestrian walkway at the corner of Jalan Sultan turning into Petaling Street (see pic).
A few of the black rubbish bags were torn and had leachate leaking.
The rubbish not only partially blocked the pedestrian walkway, but was certainly an unwelcome sight for the popular area that draws local and foreign visitors.
The authorities or agencies in charge of cleanliness and rubbish collection should be more aware of the condition of public infrastructure, particularly in the city’s numerous tourist attractions, so that visitors do not have a negative image of the city’s general cleanliness.
Maybe we can learn a lesson from Japan where rubbish bins are not provided in towns, cities and train stations crowded with people, yet it has a level of cleanliness that the nation and its people can be proud of.
KH LAW
Bandar Tun Razak,
Kuala Lumpur