KOTA KINABALU: A group of street children, who have been pestering drivers, pedestrians and tourists for money have raised concerns among the city folk here.
The children, always in dirty clothing and without any shoes, were normally seen along roads and traffic light junctions, including in tourist spots.
City folk here claimed that the children were rude and always disturb locals and tourists by asking them for money. Some even went to the extent of following them around.
A community leader has urged authorities to tackle this issue saying that it has painted a bad image for the state.
This comes after a photograph of the children, taking a bath at a water fountain at Jalan Gaya, went viral on social media.
Expressing regret of such incident, Parti Warisan Sabah secretary-general Datuk Loretto Padua called on the authorities to act against the street children.
"The police, immigration, and City Hall must use all laws that have been provided to tackle this (street children) problem.
"It's our responsibility to not only look after the safety of the community but also of tourists in the city," he said.
Loretto added that such behaviour displayed by the children could paint a bad image to the state tourism sector.
A resident Livina Chong, 33, said these “street kids” have been making their presence felt since early this year. She said they were rude at times.
"They seem to come and go. They were not around the last time, but suddenly you see them (now), disturbing car drivers and passersby.
"I had my car window knocked on several times at the traffic lights.
"There were two girls asking for money and they would make a face or show an obscene hand gesture if you didn't entertain them." said the clerk, who works in the city centre.