Since the amendment of Malaysia's Solid Waste Management and Public Cleansing Act 2007 came into effect on January 1 this year, five Singaporeans have received violation notices in Johor Bahru for littering, with three of them to be charged in the Johor Bahru Magistrate's Court next month. If convicted, they may face imprisonment, fines, or be required to perform community service such as sweeping the streets, cleaning drains, and washing public toilets.
It is reported that one of them, a 40-year-old Chinese man, was caught on January 14 littering a drink can near Century Garden in Johor Bahru, and will be tried on April 1. The other two, both 38-year-old men, were caught littering cigarette butts near the same shopping mall on January 3 and will be charged on April 7. These three are the first Singaporeans to be prosecuted in Johor since the new law came into effect.
In February this year, another Singaporean man was prosecuted for littering a cigarette butt in Kuala Lumpur, and was fined 1,500 ringgit (about 487 Singapore dollars) and ordered to complete four hours of community service sweeping streets in the city center.
Zainal Fadli, the Johor director of the Solid Waste Management Corporation of Malaysia responsible for enforcing community service orders, said that apart from the three about to be charged, two other Singaporeans have also received violation notices, but the Attorney-General's Chambers has yet to decide whether to prosecute. He reminded that offenders can be fined up to 2,000 ringgit, or face imprisonment and be required to perform up to 12 hours of community service; failure to carry out the community service order may result in a fine of up to 10,000 ringgit.