IPOH: Wrecking the environment in the name of development and profits cannot be justified, says Perak’s Sultan Nazrin Muizzuddin Shah.

       He said natural disasters occurring lately with increasing frequency should be regarded as a divine censure of mankind’s misbehaviour that has caused nature to turn against us.

       “National growth and development must be tempered with respect and love for the environment to cultivate awareness, so that man and nature can co-exist to attain a balance between growth and regeneration,” said Sultan Nazrin in his royal address during the opening of the first meeting of the fifth session of the 14th Perak state assembly here yesterday.

       The Perak Ruler said the Covid-19 pandemic, natural disasters, inflation, and lately, war, have threatened the global food supply.

       He added that the 2020 Global Report On Food Crises said the pandemic is capable of triggering a food crisis reaching critical levels, where rising food prices would affect lives and create distress.

       “Food wastage is a daily occurrence, and global data has shown that the value of food wastage has reached 2.4% of the world’s gross domestic product, and in Malaysia, it is reported that 17,000 tonnes of leftovers which could feed three million citizens are disposed of daily.

       “Some 4,080 tonnes of this food disposed of are edible, and this figure rises by 10% during Ramadan, reflecting the gravity of food wastage happening today.

       “Mankind must be educated to value food, and adopt a no-wastage culture, and thus, the government must take meaningful steps to put a stop to food wastage,” he added.

       For a start, Sultan Nazrin said state departments must set good examples by looking into the amount of food ordered for their events.

       He said all households, schools, institutions of higher learning, places of worship, food operators, restaurants, and hotels should refrain from excessive provision of food that only ends up in the bin.

       Sultan Nazrin also said that Malaysians are sorely lacking in awareness of the hazards of plastic pollution that could poison the food chain and the environment, and various organisations must play their role in educating the public to refrain from littering and to reduce the use of plastics.

       “The public must be educated to avoid discarding plastic waste into rivers, seas, drains, and on the ground,” he said, adding that on an average, Malaysians discard more than 30,000 tonnes of plastic waste yearly.

       Sultan Nazrin also said the young are important national assets, with 28% of the Malaysian population being youths, while some 7.8 million youths would be eligible voters in the 15th General Election.

       “They need to be fostered, guided, educated and be given the trust to take on greater responsibility to build a nation-state that is close-knit, united, progressive, and prosperous.

       “Every vision, idea, aspiration and plan can only be realised if it is administered by a trustworthy, sincere, honest, and transparent machinery.

       “These goals can only be achieved if an administration observes a very high level of integrity, is transparent, free from corruption and abuse of power, accountable to the people, and more so, accountable to Allah,” he added.