PROMPT action by authorities led to the immediate removal of illegal domestic waste site next to Ji Gong Temple in Kepong Baru, Kuala Lumpur, on the same day it was reported.
Kepong MP Lim Lip Eng’s office alerted Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Corporation (SWCorp) following complaints from temple devotees about foul odour and flies.
This led to officers sealing the site entrance and directing the landowner to clean the private plot.
The swift response brought long-awaited relief to temple-goers at the site along Jalan Antoi Kanan 3 who had been dealing with the environmental eyesore on the vacant lot since July.
Temple caretaker Choo Kwai Fun, 56, said the unbearable smell and swarming insects had severely disrupted prayers and daily operations.
She said the smell was bad, even when it did not rain.
“When it rained, it was worse,” she said, adding that lorries were seen unloading waste at the site at various times of the day.
“Those who come to pray at the temple have been complaining about the bad smell and flies.
“People are unable to pray peacefully. I used to set up fly traps and catch hundreds of flies every time, but there was always more,” Choo said.
Lim’s office raised the matter to SWCorp following a site visit by his special officer Lai Chun Chian following complaints from temple authorities.
When contacted by StarMetro for a follow-up, Lai said: “SWCorp sealed the entrance to the site last month. I also learnt that SWCorp had notified the landowner to clear the land in two weeks, failing which enforcement action would be taken.”
He noted that the vacant plot was private property and the responsibility fell on the owner to maintain it.
