Sabah Bebas Sampah campaign had significantly reduced waste in Semporna, said former DO

9 October 2025

KOTA KINABALU: Semporna was once cleanest town when the then district officer imposed stricter by-law and thorough waste management.

Retired Bianus Kontong has recalled how the Sabah Bebas Sampah (SBS) campaign implemented between 2018 and 2020 had significantly reduced the litters in the district.

According to him, the initiative began with community advocacy and was later strengthened through the enforcement of local by-laws, leading to quick and tangible results.

“We carried out clean-up activities and then enforced it through the by-laws. Within two months, the problem was solved,” he said during a press conference at Parti Warisan headquarters here.

Among the campaign’s most distinctive efforts was the creation of a vest emblazoned with “Monyet”.

He added that was meant to remind even the Munyid community not to litter.

He said strict enforcement contributed to the campaign’s success.

Offenders caught littering were fined RM50 on the spot, and the local council, police, and community worked together to uphold the initiative.

“The moment someone littered, they were fined immediately. The enforcement was visible, and it worked.

“After that, people began cleaning up voluntarily. It really worked.”

Beyond land-based efforts, the district also tackled marine litter through innovation and local ingenuity.

“In Semporna, rubbish from other areas like Tawau would sometimes drift in with the tide. Because Semporna is surrounded by islands, once trash entered the bay, it couldn’t drift out easily,” he said.

To address this, his team created a floating machine known as the skimmer boat, designed to vacuum up rubbish from the sea surface.

“We released the skimmerboat into the sea to suck up floating trash. Besides that, we made bamboo tracks to collect smaller debris and nano waste before it spread.

“We also built two incinerators there. All the rubbish collected was sent to the incinerators, and after incineration, only about two kilograms of ash remained.”

Bianus, who retired in 2020, said he was unsure whether the skimmer boats and incinerators were still operational today.

“As for what happened to the boat after we left, I don’t know. We’d need a white paper on it, because we’re no longer in charge.”