5 Mins With Dr Xavier

(Malay Mail)

Is it true that the council is neglecting its duties at several neighbourhoods in Klang?

That is certainly not true. The council has already cleared up the rubbish pile at Jalan Sri Damak twice. However, some irresponsible people are dumping rubbish again at the same place, at night. This is frustrating. How often can the council clean that particular place if certain members of the public are not being responsible themselves?

There have also been various complaints forwarded about the council neglecting its cleaning duties in your constituency. What are your views on this?

The rakyat must understand that rubbish collection is entrusted to an independent contractor. The council cannot act on its own as it could be construed as a breach of contract. It must wait for the contractor to take necessary measures.

What does the State plan to do about this?

Firstly, we are going to make the current cleaning zones smaller and bring in more contractors for a more focused clean-up of the areas. Secondly, we are no longer going to give long-term contracts to cleaning contractors. We are only going to give year-long contracts and the government will review the contract at the end of every term. Therefore, if a particular zone receives many complaints from the public, the contract will not be extended. I am also asking the people to change their mentality and not litter or throw their garbage at every corner.

What about the traffic congestion in Klang?

Klang is a very old town. The planning was done a long time ago. Now we have a million residents in Klang. We cannot simply relocate everything. It takes time. Of course, there is going to be congestion for the time being. All I can ask is for the people of Klang to be patient. I cannot make a difference within 10 months over what has been going on for 50 years.