IPOH: The Ipoh City Council (MBI) says it does not have any ongoing collaboration with the Ipoh branch of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ISPCA).
This follows the circulation of a short video promoting a stray animal management programme with what MBI said is unauthorised use of its official logo.
In a statement on Friday (July 25), MBI said the animated clip, featuring both the MBI and ISPCA logos, was uploaded on Facebook.
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It promotes a trap-neuter-release-manage (TNRM) initiative involving the use of red collars on strays.
MBI said the video gave a misleading impression that the council was still officially involved in the programme, despite there being no active collaboration between the two parties at present.
As a result, it has issued an official directive for ISPCA to immediately remove all promotional materials and social media content displaying the MBI logo.
It also warned that no official emblem, logo, or symbol of the council may be used in any promotional content without prior written approval.
“MBI also denies any involvement or connection with ISPCA’s latest activities, particularly those involving the red collar marking system on stray animals, which the group allegedly carried out using MBI’s name.
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“Any use of MBI’s visual identity is subject to formal approval, and those who violate this may face legal action,” the council said.
When contacted, ISPCA president Ricky Soong said there previously was a video of the TNRM programme where both parties worked together.
This was back in 2018, he added.
“I even have the official letter of support. That’s why I included it in the video design at that time.
“We were working together with several veterinarians and also with MBI,” he said.
Soong said the initiative began in 2017, and ISPCA received an official letter of support from MBI in 2018.
"The programme continued for a few years until the change of government (after GE15 in November 2022) and it was no longer carried out after that,” he said.
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On Monday (July 21), a video clip emerged showing workers in uniform burying several dead dogs at a pound in Lahat, and was shared by the ISPCA.
In one segment of the footage, many dogs are seen alive in cages, while another shows mass graves where presumably dead dogs are thrown.
On Tuesday (July 22), MBI denied allegations that dogs were buried alive, but said the animals shown in the graves had been put to sleep humanely and according to guidelines and legal frameworks.
Perak housing and local government committee chairman Sandrea Ng also told a press conference that the TNRM programme was found to be ineffective in areas with high stray populations and that the council would handle the matter through euthanasia.
