| I REFER to the report, 'Record number of litterbugs nabbed' (ST, Dec 31). I urge the Government to consider some drastic measures against litterbugs.
In addition to fines, give black marks to repeat offenders (those who are caught twice or more) so they have lower priority when applying for HDB flats, government jobs, university and polytechnic places, vehicle COEs and so on. Also, give them zero chance of National Day Parade tickets, Safra and NTUC membership, which should go only to more deserving people. For rich but kiasu Singaporeans and permanent residents, these punishments will hurt more than fines alone.
Brief foreign workers and new citizens and PRs that we have a problem, and do not wish them to make it worse. Such briefing sessions can be done when they collect their work permits, citizenship or PR papers.
Make business owners (for example, of construction and shipbuilding companies) ensure their workers do not litter. Make it compulsory for lorries that carry workers to have a secured and covered trash bin on board. Make business owners understand they must comply with Safety, Health and Environment regulations before they are granted a licence to operate. Business owners should conduct compulsory briefings for their workers at least once a year, with such briefings attended by a Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources representative. Business owners whose workers commit an offence should have their licence suspended for a day, during which the company should perform a company-wide corrective work order (CWO) in public.
Unless the littering situation is arrested and reversed, work done to beautify our parks, estates and roads will go down the drain.
Jonathan Toh Joo Khai |
