Putrajaya School Encourages Students to Clean Up After Meals Through “Clean As You Go” Practice, Earns PMX’s Praise

Instilling lifelong civic values starts at a young age, and one primary school in Putrajaya is winning praise across the nation, including from the Prime Minister himself, for teaching students to take pride in keeping their school canteen spotless!

Taking to Threads, user @syamillhalek, a chef at the canteen of Sekolah Kebangsaan Putrajaya Presint 11(2), shared a heartwarming clip showing students diligently wiping down dining tables with spray bottles and cloths right after finishing their recess meals. 

“At our canteen, we practice ‘clean as you go’. We provide cleaning cloths and spray for the students to wipe down and tidy up the spaces they use. Please pray that this effort helps shape these students as they grow up with positive, wholesome values,” the user wrote.

PM Anwar Ibrahim leaves encouraging praise online

The viral video quickly caught the attention of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who dropped a thoughtful Malay proverb in the post’s comment section to express his support for the school’s initiative.

“Bend the bamboo while it’s young. May they grow up to be good, successful, and disciplined children, God willing.” PM Anwar commented on the post.

The Prime Minister’s reply garnered tens of thousands of likes, with netizens applauding both the school community and the government’s recognition of ground-level character-building efforts.

School canteen chef shares the journey behind the practice

The user explained that when their canteen vendor team took over management in 2022, they joined forces with the school administration and the Parent-Teacher Association (PIBG) to build cleaner habits gradually.

“At first, the students were not fully utilising it well. But then, with the teachers, student representatives, and canteen staff monitoring and constantly reminding everyone to do it together, the habit stuck. As for now, most of the students who are there are comfortable doing it by themselves,” the user shared.

Reacting to the unexpected shout-out from Malaysia’s top leader, the user expressed immense gratitude and even threw out a warm invitation:

“We were shocked and glad to be noticed by the PM for something positive, knowing that our PM’s concern for schools in Malaysia is high. We even asked the PM to come over to our canteen!

“We know that we are not the only ones doing this kind of practice, but I hope the people of Malaysia can take this positive message and hold onto it to become our own habit, not just in school,” the user said to WORLD OF BUZZ.

What are your thoughts on implementing “Clean As You Go” routines in schools nationwide? Share your views in the comments section below!

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