Letter from Murali Sharma, Straits Times Forum 4 Jan 08;
IT SEEMS that we are clawing our way up the cleanliness scale.
According to the report, 'Less littering and rubbish collected at party spots (ST, Jan 2), we have surfaced from a stifling mountain of trash and improved greatly in the last two years.
But we can do better.
Waste management company FME Onyx reported a 40 per cent reduction in the amount of rubbish collected at the New Year's Eve countdown parties held at Marina Bay and Orchard in the past three years. And rubbish collected went down by a quarter from last year.
Many reasons have been advanced for this positive behaviour: stricter enforcement, changing public attitude and differing crowd sizes. No doubt one should not ban foam and confetti spray cans, which will ruin the festive spirit, but we can learn from this year's experience.
One of the things we can do to ensure a litter-free festival of peace and goodwill is for people to bring their own bags and take their litter home. If this is too troublesome, the revellers can throw their bags of litter into the bins so generously provided by the authorities.
This should not be too difficult if we are proud to be Singaporeans and want to set a good example to others, including our children.
Many countries including Australia, Britain, Canada, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, Sweden and the United States are famed for their cleanliness. It will be another feather in our cap and a great legacy we can leave for our children.
Soon to come are the Chinese New Year and Labour Day holidays. These two occasions should serve as practice runs to keep the country clean after National Day. Then come Hari Raya Puasa, Deepavali, the Hungry Ghost festival and so on. Each occasion generates its share of litter and can be used as preparation sessions to keep the country clean at Christmas and New Year's Eve this year.
So fellow Singaporeans, let us pull together to keep our country clean and conserve electricity and water as well. It is good for the national psyche and can form part of our culture.
My wish for the future, for every day of the year, is zero litter. Then, we can concentrate on how we can become a more welcoming, loving and caring society.
