JOHOR BARU, Dec 2 — The Johor government said it will immediately resolve the problem of rivers polluted with rubbish in the state, following a reprimand from Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar after his visit to Danga Bay on Tuesday.
Johor Mentri Besar Datuk Hasni Mohammad said the issue has always been a priority for the state government and several action plans have also been made specifically to overcome the problem of river pollution.
He said all government agencies involved were asked to speed up the implementation of initiatives in the Sungai Skudai Special Area Plan to overcome the problems that occurred and complete the river monitoring plan.
“We have the special area plan for rivers, among them Sungai Skudai, involving agencies such as the Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID), the Water Regulatory Authority (BAKAJ) and for this particular issue, the Iskandar Puteri City Council.
“At present, we are waiting for the Kulai Municipal Council to complete the Sungai Skudai monitoring plan,” said Hasni at the sidelines of the JohorPay application and Johor Project Monitoring System at the Thistle Hotel here.
Hasni, who is also the Benut assemblyman, explained that the monitoring system is already in place and the state government will soon be undertaking a pilot project in terms of river management using boats.
“The pilot project is being tested. So, when there is cooperation from the respective land offices, DID, BAKAJ and the local authorities, I believe we can solve the rubbish pollution problem in Sungai Skudai and Sungai Tebrau,” he said.
On Tuesday, Sultan Ibrahim reprimanded state health and environment committee chairman R. Vidyananthan over the handling of indiscriminate rubbish dumping and pollution in rivers in his official Facebook posting.
The state monarch called on Vidyananthan to take immediate attention to address the problem of rubbish in Johor’s rivers, especially in Danga Bay.
