KEEP THE NATURAL BEAUTY
-Masidi cautions against overbuilding on Sabah’s beautiful seafront areas
KOTA KINABALU:
Precautionary steps must be taken to ensure that any development in the City, especially along the waterfront will not spoil its natural beauty.
“We are blessed with some of the, most beautiful seafronts in the world and we shouldn’t overbuild on it,” Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun said.
The beauty of Sabah is in its natural wonders, according to him.
He said: “And not in its old buildings or new buildings for that matter. We should be careful in how we build up Kota Kinabalu.”
Masidi was asked if there would be any future developments for the city’s waterfront, which would be the venue for the F2 World Cup Powerboat race the next three years.
He was speaking to reporters at a press conference after the prize presentation ceremony for the winners of the international event which was held along the waterfront from the UNHCR Filipino market to Anjung Senja from December 1 to yesterday.
“If I have my way, I would like to have the whole area beautified ... keep it open with something that makes it look pleasant but at the same time which can be utilised for other events,” he said.
Masidi said there is a need to balance profit with responsibility in terms of development.
“You can have all the best buildings in the world but finally I think we should keep, as far as possible what
God has given us and that’s how it should be,” he said.
When asked about the litter problem, especially plastic bags in the sea along the water front, Masidi said it was a big concern to the Government and all relevant quarters.
“As I have stated in the newspapers, it is our commitment to clean up the sea but please bear with us as we are surrounded by islands, some which are inhabited,” he said, lamenting that there are people who persistently throw rubbish into the sea which gets washed up on this part of the city.
Nevertheless Masidi assured that the Government is looking for ways to overcome the problem as it was also very concerned about it.
“We can’t promise you that the problem will be solved overnight but we will definitely find a way to minimise it. We are as concerned as you,” he said, adding that educating the people about the detrimental effects of throwing rubbish indiscriminately would be part of the solution.
The other way, he said, would be to phase out the use of plastic bags or containers.
“I’m sure the plastic industry people won’t be happy to hear this. In other parts of the world there is a movement to ban the use of plastics. In fact they have already manufactured something that is like plastic but biodegradable and I think we should be moving towards that direction.
“We should be concerned about our environment and I believe there is a need for us to phase out, over time, the use of plastics... for the sake of our environment,” he said.
Masidi was replying to a question on the steps the Government would take to keep the race venue rubbish- free for future events.
Mayor Datuk Iliyas Ibrahim who was also at the press conference, said City Hall had appointed contractors to clean up the City and beaches all the way from Tanjung Aru To Tanjung Lipat in Likas.
Iliyas however pointed out that cleaning up the sea is a different matter as it is not an easy task to do, adding that the contractors are being paid RM500,000 a year to do the clean-up job.
