KUCHING: Mitsubishi Motors Malaysia (MMM), the official distributor of Mitsubishi vehicles in Malaysia, is supporting wildlife conservation efforts in Sarawak.
It contributed its first unit of Mitsubishi Triton 4×4 pickup truck to Sarawak Forestry Corporation (SFC) yesterday.
The vehicle was handed over by MMM’s Chief Executive Officer, Tomoyuki Shinnishi to Chief Executive Officer of SFC, Wong Ting Chung during a ceremony held at Matang Wildlife Centre (MWC) here.
The effort was part of Mitsubishi Motors Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme. The Triton will be used for wildlife rescue and related conservation work at MWC, such as boundary patrolling and protection operations.
Shinnishi, in his address at the event, said, “Mitsubishi Motors is proud to assist and support SFC, an organisation that devotes its time for a good cause. We acknowledge its efforts in rescuing wildlife of various species which are brought in to MWC for rehabilitation purposes.
“The Triton pickup truck has certainly passed many endurance tests and has been used in various gruelling off-road events. We hope that it will assist SFC well in many of its rescue adventures to come, no matter the terrain”.
Meanwhile, Wong, in his welcoming address, said that due to increasing public awareness on wildlife conservation and protection, MWC and Semenggoh Wildlife Centre were facing growing demands for additional capacities in rescue, rehabilitation and other operational aspects such as transportation.
“Therefore, contributions such as this Trition pickup truck by MMM are timely, practical and very much appreciated for our work here at MWC,” he expressed, adding that SFC hoped that more organisations would support the corporation’s conservation work in time to come.
He added, apart from the truck which was the main attraction at the event, he would also like to draw attention to the attractive mural painting and welcome signage as acknowledgement of MMM’s contributions to MWC.
In addition, MMM also will be adopting a new male baby orangutan, born last Sunday morning, which was named as Triton yesterday. To date, 30 orangutans have been rehabilitated at MWC, of which six were born at the centre.
MWC cares for endangered mammals, birds and reptile species but it is the centre’s orangutan rehabilitation programme that has
caught the attention of people the world over.
SFC’s rehabilitation works were initially concentrated only at Semenggoh Wildlife Centre at Semenggoh Nature Reserve. However, starting 1998, new orangutans were admitted to MWC in view of the increasing orangutan population being rehabilitated at Semenggoh Wildlife Centre.
