Malaysia plans to plant 100 million trees in five years

Penang Island City Council landscape department staff and members of several NGOs planting 'Rhizophora apiculata' (bakau minyak) in Kuala Sungai Pinang, Balik Pulau, in December 2020. One way in which the government's new tree planting campaign aims to be effective is by ensuring its departments and agencies do not work in silos. — ZAINUDIN AHAD/The Star

A Facebook post showing an image of the trunk of a massive cengal tree, a rare tropical hardwood species, stripped of its branches and strapped atop a trailer flatbed had many Malaysians dismayed and up in arms.

Uploaded on May 23, 2021, the picture of the trailer, purportedly parked at a rest and recreation area along the East Coast Expressway near Temerloh, Pahang, was shared more than 5, 400 times and received over 12, 000 reactions.