LETTER | Dear editor, pigeons invading a hospital? A viral video has gotten heads shaking in disgust all over the country.

When pigeons start invading the very wards where patients are supposed to be kept safe for recovery, you can be sure that this is not a climate change phenomenon affecting Malaysia, nor a sudden invasion that happened overnight.

It is a failure in the systems that are supposed to govern the environment.

It also echoes a failure of what many have resigned with frustration, namely, the collapse of our national maintenance culture.

It clearly showcases that the pigeon population, much like the crow menace, has imploded.

This implosion is because citizens tend to discard food waste irresponsibly.

Further, people are not schooled on the potential health hazards these scavenging pigeons can bring upon us.

It is a scientific fact that the dangers associated with pigeon droppings fall into three main categories: fungal infections, bacterial diseases, and hypersensitivity reactions.

Pigeon droppings are known to present hidden health hazards primarily when they dry out, crumble, and become airborne. Inhaling this contaminated dust can cause severe respiratory illnesses, lung scarring, and systemic infections.

Why do we have to wait every time for failures to go viral on social media before remedies are attempted by those immediately responsible for standards, controls, and improvements?

We are now talking about pigeons invading hospitals. How about uncared-for, stray cats roaming freely at eateries, markets, and, of course, at hospitals?

In this case, affecting hospitals, the Health Ministry owes Malaysians an acceptable response.

Media monitoring can help much in ensuring such potentially disastrous developments are not swept under the carpet, and only waiting to resurface after we have all comfortably forgotten about the failures.

And god’s sake, stop telling netizens not to share such exposés on social media or speculate. Take accountability instead.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.