PUTRAJAYA, Aug 28 (NNN-BERNAMA) — In the spirit of Merdeka, a group of over 150 hikers from diverse backgrounds, race, religion and age, gathered recently with ‘one objective’ to cleanup the Gasing Hill in Petaling Jaya.
Organised for the fifth time by the Happy Hikers, the event was not only aimed at clearing rubbish from the forest floor of the hill area but also bringing people together, in the spirit of unity among Malaysians, to celebrate the upcoming 62nd National Day on Aug 31.
“The mission is more than just a cleanup effort but also a community service journey that embark on opportunities for citizens of all races and creed to work together towards a common vision. We hope this cleanup activity will not only bring the people closer but spread the spirit of unity,” said its founder Ganesan Pillay.
Ganesan said just as nature lived in harmony such as the trees, plants, rivers and oceans, the same applied to the people in a community regardless of their race and that each and everyone’s role and contribution were crucial in building Malaysia.
“There is a need to show that working together towards one common goal, whether in safeguarding the nature or preserve the unity, to drive Malaysia forward,” he said.
The event meanwhile was successful with 1,000 kilogrammes of rubbish collected!
However, Ganesan lamented that this indirectly also reflected the people’s poor attitude towards the environment and added more such events should be held to raise awareness towards nature conservation.
Meanwhile, Mohammed Rashid Abdul Ajij, 55, said the event was about people from various ethnic backgrounds and age groups coming together to help clean up a small part of the country that many Malaysians love.
The Gasing Hill is among the remaining green lungs that borders the city of Kuala Lumpur and Petaling Jaya.
“This kind of event will also instill a sense of ownership and love for Malaysia,” he said, adding that the coming together also underlined the importance of the duty of every Malaysian to preserve unity among the communities to sustain peace and harmony in the country.
–NNN-BERNAMA