00:00 The Fisheries Department (DOF) has reported that six rivers in the Klang Valley are now
00:07 dominated by foreign fish species, including the Ikan Bandaraya, Amazon sailfin catfish,
00:13 black tilapia and African catfish.
00:16 The rivers involved are Sungai Kuyo, Sungai Klang, Sungai Keroh, Sungai Jinjang, Sungai
00:23 Gomba and Sungai Batu.
00:26 DOF Director-General Datuk Adnan Hussein expressed serious concern over this issue, noting that
00:32 the prevalence of these foreign species could hinder the development of ecosystem biodiversity
00:37 in these rivers.
00:38 "I urge all parties outside the DOF to act responsibly so as not to let go of fish that
00:47 we think we no longer want to keep, which can threaten the ecosystem, so that it is
00:53 not lost to the authorities such as the DOF to release it in the proper way."
00:59 "This campaign is for Indonesia, right?"
01:01 "Yes, this is for Indonesia, but we are giving a stand to the rivers that are reported to
01:08 have a slightly affected ecosystem with the original fish, especially fish that we have
01:13 not been able to give much to the economic value.
01:17 For example, the Ikan Bandaraya does not give much to the economic value compared to
01:22 the Ikan Bawang Iku Merah, which is caught in the Perang or Perak rivers.
01:27 This fish has a good economic value, so many parties outside the DOF can sell this fish
01:33 at a good price in the market, compared to the Ikan Peku or Ikan Tilapia Hitam."
01:39 He made these remarks during a press conference after launching the Foreign Fish Hunting Programme
01:44 with the community at Sungai Kuyo, Bukit Jalil on Sunday.
01:48 Adnan explained that the purpose of the hunting programme is to restore ecological balance
01:54 and ensure that the country's rivers remain safe for the reintroduction of native fish species.
01:59 He highlighted that, through this programme, over 600 foreign fish, weighing a total of
02:05 400 kilograms, were caught within two hours.
02:08 "The majority of the fish that were caught today were the Ikan Tilapia Hitam, the first
02:13 one, and the second one was the Ikan Bandaraya or Ikan Peliku.
02:18 We also caught the African Keli, the Jawa Lampang and the Jaguar from the Cek Lidih family
02:27 that we were able to catch this morning by the community."
02:33 This initiative is a collaboration between the DOF, Komuniti Pemburu Ikan Bandaraya,
02:39 government agencies, University Utara Malaysia, UUM, University Technology Mara,
02:46 RUITM and the private sector.
02:49 Thank you.
02:50 [END]
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