KUCHING: A survey shows that Sarawakians want the new government and all future leaders to prioritise environmental conservation when they take office after the 12th Sarawak election on Dec 18.
WWF-Malaysia Head of Conservation for Sarawak, Dr Jason Hon said political parties and candidates have mostly touched on development subject matters and lacked messaging on environment and nature conservation in the past two weeks of election campaigns.
He said the people have also voiced their concerns and hope for better governance that protects the environment, as evident from the results of the online survey here.
"They may represent a small group of people but their voices are loud and clear: We want a better environment for the well-being of Sarawakians," he said in a statement.
He said WWF-Malaysia had conducted a 17-day online survey, which was held in conjunction with the state election, about environmental concerns.
The survey started on Nov 26 via digital media and messaging services, which garnered a total 324 responses, submitted by people from various age groups and backgrounds. The majority of the respondents were aged between 31 and 45 years old.
According to the survey, about 90 per cent expressed that they would like to know more about environmental aspirations for Sarawak, and a majority opined that politicians do not pay enough attention to the environment.
Hon said prior to the survey, WWF-Malaysia also sent out open letters to all political parties in Sarawak urging them to include bold yet achievable environmental commitments in their manifestos.
He said in its open letter, WWF-Malaysia asked for effective implementation of sound policies and plans based on environmental sustainability, including the continuation of good existing policies and action plans aligned to the SDGs; and encouraging the participation of youths and non-state actors in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the post-Covid-19 plans.
"A majority of the respondents (of the survey) expect future state government or legislators to have and enforce strict regulations to address pollution and indiscriminate waste disposals; have programmes to clean up dirty rivers, increase green areas or plant more trees in cities and towns, have more recycling efforts and facilities, and have better protection for wildlife," he said.
He added that there were also aspirations for future leaders to assist in creating more green jobs, gazette more protected areas and increase environmental awareness programmes in Sarawak.
In the survey, respondents also urged for better and meaningful collaborations between politicians, local authorities, NGOs and communities to come together to tackle environmental issues. They also called for increased environmental education and awareness programmes and strong policy and enforcement to manage our natural resources, address pollution and tackle illegal logging.
"The challenges around the globe caused by the Covid-19 pandemic have impacted our economy and wellbeing. They were caused in part by our poor management of the environment. Moving forward, let us all increase our efforts to ensure a healthier and more resilient environment for the people of Sarawak."
"Together with Sarawakians, we want to inform our future leaders that we look to them to prioritise environmental conservation when they take office," he stressed.