To be clean, all must get hands dirty


All hands on deck: Volunteers Farah Ismail (right) and Christina Yoong joining the Malaysia Clean-Up Day 2024 event in Petaling Jaya last week. However, every day should be a clean-up day, says the writer. — MUHAMAD SHAHRIL ROSLI/The Star

IT’S not a pleasant job but someone has to do it. Since assuming the post of Housing and Local Government Minister, Nga Kor Ming has made cleaning up our toilets and streets among his key priorities.

He isn’t the first to do so, as previous officials from the ministry have also tried. The late Datuk Robert Lau Hoi Chew, then Deputy Housing and Local Government Minister, took his job so seriously that he was nicknamed the Toilet King during his term from 1990 to 2010.

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Wong Chun Wai , On the Beat column
Wong Chun Wai

Wong Chun Wai

Wong Chun Wai began his career as a journalist in Penang, and has served The Star for over 35 years in various capacities and roles. He is now group editorial and corporate affairs adviser to the group, after having served as group managing director/chief executive officer. On The Beat made its debut on Feb 23 1997 and Chun Wai has penned the column weekly without a break, except for the occasional press holiday when the paper was not published. In May 2011, a compilation of selected articles of On The Beat was published as a book and launched in conjunction with his 50th birthday. Chun Wai also comments on current issues in The Star.

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