MBPP pays tribute to pensioners and award winners

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PENANG Island City Council (MBPP) mayor Datuk Yew Tung Seang this morning stressed that every excellent award winner and MBPP staff member should play an important role to realise the council’s aspirations.

These aspirations, which include the Green Agenda and Cleanliness using loT, cloud computing in the era of Industry 4.0, will be highly emphasised to make Penang an ‘intelligent, liveable and happy city’.

“This is also in line with the state’s Penang2030 vision – a family focused green and smart state that inspires the nation,” Yew said when he officiated the Pensioner Appreciation and Excellent Performance Award function held at the Wembley, St Giles Hotel in George Town.

Also present was MBPP secretary Addnan Mohd Razali.

A total of 111 pensioners for the year 2018 each received a plaque, voucher worth RM200 and recognition certificate, while 238 staff members from various departments received excellent award certificate along with RM1,000 each.

Yew said MBPP was the first local authority to launch the ‘Say No to Plastic Straws and Single Use Plastics’ on June 24, 2018.

“We have inspired the nation,” he said, adding that Federal Territory Ministry followed later by announcing plastic straw ban in Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan from Jan 1, this year.

He said MBPP also initiated programmes involving the reduction of carbon emission to make Penang a liveable city such as through increasing recycling rate, saying No to Plastic Straws and Single Use Plastics, encouraging Green Building Index (UBBL 38A), repopulating George Town and backlane transformation, promoting a walkable city and a cycling island.

“MBPP has received many awards and recognitions in 2018, such as the Penang Coastal Cycling Route and Penang Chowrasta. These two projects received ‘Special Recognition for Public Facility Award’ in conjunction with Property Guru Asia Property Awards (Malaysia) on April 12, 2019.

“The successes reflect the hard work of all MBPP staff members, who carried out their work with full integrity, diligence and responsibility.”

Yew also said MBPP would start a pilot project to convert food waste to energy in Batu Maung by month end.

Meanwhile, among the recipients of the Excellent Performance Award was Dr Chin Wee Loon, 35, a health officer in the Environmental Health Department.

Chin, who graduated from Penang Medical College, had his training at Penang Hospital before being posted to Sarawak after his medical studies.


Having served the MBPP for the past four years, he said helping out in the APMG 2018 Torch Run organised by MBPP gave him some special memories.


“Our group was assigned to coordinate the torch run from Perak to Penang, which was quite a huge experience for us.

“Today’s award surprised me. I will continue to serve my best. I love to see people happy. It gives me job satisfaction rather than monetary gain,” he said, adding that he dedicated his award to those who have supported his work and his fiancee, who is completing her studies in Kuala Lumpur.

Pensioner, Abdull Jabbar Kachu Meera, 61, who has been a 3D worker for some 40 years with the council, said: “ I enjoyed my work all these years, treating it as a daily exercise.”

One unforgettable incident for him was the flash floods in 2017 that brought Penang to a standstill.

“The incident evoked sad memories especially to those victims directly affected. MBPP workers had to work for 10 days at a stretch to help clear up the debris,” he recalled vividly.

Jabbar thanked the council management for the recognition given to pensioners who had contributed their services.

Story by Danny Ooi
Pix by Alissala Thian