Mabul villagers become 'Semporna heroes' in helping to clean island

 By Olivia Miwil - November 18, 2020 @ 10:58am

In Mabul, a tourist destination, the rubbish had piled up due to lack of boats to bring it out to the mainland which is about an hour's ride. Before this, resorts and operators had been helping the islanders in terms of waste management. - Photo courtesy of Semporna Heroes.

SEMPORNA: Rather than follow the norm and simply get their food aid, villagers here were asked to go an extra mile and collect rubbish in exchange.

The volunteer group, called Semporna Heroes came up with this idea to help the villagers and also keep the surroundings clean.

The week-long project, which also saw the participation of off-duty doctors, concluded yesterday with a collection of about 15 tonnes of rubbish from around the island.

Its president Samuel Lee said that the establishment of Semporna Heroes began when the third wave of Covid-19 hit the district in September.

As for Mabul, a tourist destination, the rubbish had piled up due to lack of boats to bring it out to the mainland which is about an hour's ride.

Before this, resorts and operators had been helping the islanders in terms of waste management.

But, due to the Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO), most premises were now temporarily closed.

"This time, we want to include the Mabul people to be heroes by helping to clean the island.

Before the clean-up and food distribution, Semporna Heroes volunteers also conducted house-to-house surveys to update their population database for Mabul island. - Photo courtesy of Semporna Heroes.

"Instead of doing the clean-up in a day, it was spread into three days to ensure the community abides by the standard operating procedures to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

"Apart from bringing in food packs for the people, this project also helped to bring out rubbish out," he said, adding a speed boat, which could accommodate about 1.5 tonnes load per trip, had to make several trips.

The project was sponsored by MPI Generali Insurans, Go Scuba, Uncle Chang's Sipadan Mabul Dive Lodge. Soh Swee Tian and several others.

Before the clean-up and food distribution, Semporna Heroes volunteers also conducted house-to-house surveys to update their population database for Mabul island.

"Such a census is important for us to know the island, where they live and how many people in a house.

"It helps in planning for food distribution especially milk powder for families with young children," he said, adding the island has about 600 households.