At the stroke of midnight on Jan 1, 2024, thousands of Malaysians took to the streets to usher in the new year and were dazzled by the fireworks display that came with it.
Sadly, it seemed that even the new year couldn’t do much to break old habits, such as indiscriminate littering once the celebration was over.
DBKL slams partygoers for littering after New Year celebration
In a Facebook post shared by the Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) yesterday (Jan 1), it showed several photos of rubbish being strewn all over the streets after the party came to an end.
In the photos, it is obvious that the state of the streets was unhygienic and an eyesore but no one could be bothered to clear it up.
One of the photos even showed cars driving over trash which drifted off onto the road, which made it even worse.
Needless to say, the lack of civic consciousness deeply saddened DBKL, who didn’t hold back in making their disappointment known and called the partygoers’ behavior as “3rd world mentality”.
“Today marks the first day we step into the 2024 and we left 2023 behind with a thousand memories. Surely everyone of us has set resolutions to achieve greater success in pursuing our dreams this year.
However, the beginning for Kuala Lumpur this year is, as usual, tainted by the attitude of several city dwellers who still have outdated thinking and behavior, where they litter indiscriminately with the assumption that DBKL will clean it up later.
DBKL also wrote that it was ironic to see some wanting to compare KL with other major cities in terms of beauty when they themselves can’t even clear their own trash.
Towards the end of the post, DBKL called upon the public to not litter everywhere and learn to clean up after themselves.
“We’re not asking for your help to clean the area, but as a start, each person should manage their own waste, don’t litter everywhere, and if necessary, bring their own trash bag.”
‘New year, same mentality’
In the comment section, netizens were disheartened to see the age-old issue of littering still rearing its ugly head despite ushering in 2024.
‘Classless mentality.’
‘New year but the brain’s still stuck in the past.’
However, one netizen argued that it wasn’t the partygoers’ fault for the unsightly condition of the streets and said DBKL should provide more rubbish bins.
Aside from New Year celebrations, littering is also a common problem at concerts, as shown during Coldplay and Billie Eilish’s concerts in the past:
