Perak Netizens Claim A River In Their Community Has Turned Black Due To Pig Waste Dumping
"The people of Bidor have been smelling pig shit for decades. It's amazing how no council members have been willing to help."
By May Vin Ang — 24 Sep 2020, 04:59 PM
Netizens from Bidor, Perak have taken to social media to voice their dissatisfaction over the alleged issue of pig waste dumping that has turned a river in their community black with filth
The issue was brought to light on Tuesday, 22 September, when Facebook user Abd Aziz Mohamed shared on Facebook group Warga Bidor a few photos showing the dark river water of Sungai Kuala Gepai.
As a resident of the community, he complained that the river was being polluted by a nearby pig farm for decades.
"It seems that there will be no conclusion to this pig issue. Look at the situation this afternoon at Sungai Kuala Gepai, the pig waste water that was thrown into the river is disgusting, the water is so black," he wrote.
"No one cares, especially the ones who should be in charge of monitoring this."
The 45-year-old shared that this was not the first time that he has seen the river so black and said that it has been going on for years
Abd Aziz told Harian Metro that no action has been taken despite having repeatedly made complaints to the authorities.
He said that the village residents hope that the relevant authorities would take charge of the issue as soon as possible as the smell from the river has become unbearable.
According to him, the livelihood of the Orang Asli community in the nearby Kampung Chang has also been affected by the polluted river.
Other members of the group, which is made up of the community in Bidor, also joined in to express their disappointment
"The people of Bidor have been smelling pig shit for decades. It's amazing how no council members have been willing to help," said one of them.
"I hope the young people of Bidor would open their eyes and help fight for the rights of the Bidor Muslim community."
A group member shared that he had made a report about the condition of the river to the Department of Environment (DOE) a few months ago, but did not get a reply.
"I made a report a few months ago, but DOE still hasn't taken any action. Did it just as a notion," he said, sharing a screenshot of the report he made.
Another netizen said, "We are so tired of complaining to only have this issue be blown over again the next day."
"We are so tired of yapping about this because in the end, the pigs are still there."
After the issue was bought to light, the Perak DOE finally responded and said that they will be launching an investigation into the allegations
When contacted by Bernama on Wednesday, 23 September, Perak DOE director Rosli Zul said the department received a report on contamination of the river on Monday night.
"The Perak DOE is referring the case to the Veterinary Department and we will investigate it together," he said.
