KUALA LUMPUR: A Chinese national and eight locals were forced to swap their morning routines for bin bags and brooms after being sentenced to community service for littering in the capital.
The group, aged between 29 and 61, spent up to four hours on Wednesday (April 15) scouring the pavements surrounding the Kuala Lumpur Football Stadium and Tasik Permaisuri in Bandar Tun Razak.
The clean-up was part of a court-mandated sentence under the Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Act 2007 (Act 672).
Under the legislation, those caught littering face fines of up to RM2,000 and must complete as many as 12 hours of community service within a six-month window.
Speaking during the sixth series of the community service order programme outside the stadium, Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Corporation (SWCorp) chief executive officer Khalid Mohamed confirmed the latest batch of offenders had been ordered to complete between one and four hours of labour within a month.
Khalid said that enforcement has intensified significantly, with 480 notices of offence issued in Kuala Lumpur to date, resulting in 51 court-ordered sentences.
Across the seven states that have adopted Act 672, a total of 2,857 notices have been served, involving 2,158 locals and 699 foreign nationals.
The data suggests a particular trend amongst younger adults, as those aged between 30 and 39 make up the largest demographic of offenders, accounting for nearly 30% of all cases.
To date, 63 individuals have completed their court-ordered service, a figure set to rise to 72 following the latest operation in Bandar Tun Razak.
Looking ahead, SWCorp plans to ramp up its visible enforcement. The seventh series of the programme, scheduled for April 30, is expected to involve more than 100 offenders across the country.
