IPOH, March 10 — The Housing and Local Government Ministry (KPKT) is in talks with the Selangor and Penang governments about the adoption of the Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Act 2007 (Act 672).
Minister Nga Kor Ming said that if both states agreed, they would join the other seven states that have adopted the act.
“Selangor has agreed in principle, and I had an audience with the Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah Alhaj, who has given his consent to adopting Act 672. We are now awaiting the decision from the state executive council to start discussions with Selangor in detail,” he said at a press conference after officiating the Urban Community Sustainability Programme (PKKB): PPR Community Carnival @ Rumah Pangsa Jalan Hospital, here today.
Nga said that so far, seven states have adopted Act 672, while five more, namely Kelantan, Terengganu, Perak, Selangor and Penang, have yet to sign the agreement.
Act 672 aims to ensure uniformity in law for the proper control and regulation of matters relating to the management of controlled solid waste and public cleansing.
Nga said the government would continue to negotiate with states that have not yet adopted the act.
“Our door is always open. Take Perak, for example, the state with the highest number of PBTs (local authorities) in the peninsula, totalling 15. We respect the state government’s decision (not to adopt Act 672), but we always welcome it (to adopt the act), and we will continue to conduct negotiations,” he said.
Meanwhile, Nga said KPKT, through the Solid Waste Management and Public Cleansing Corporation (SWCorp), will set up 130 drive-through recycling centres (DRTC) nationwide through the Zero Waste Community Programme (Kosis).
— Bernama
