The water war: Rakyat fighting back

The water ration is fast becoming a test of stamina, endurance and fortitude.

COMMENT

It is definitely unacceptable for the water ration exercise to continue for another three more months as announced last week. The water ration should end on April 30. Period! There has been rain in April so no more excuses should be given by the relevant water authorities.

Everyone affected by the water ration has had enough of this nonsense. There are some like this columnist and this columnist’s friend, the PAS Harakah newsletter editor, Ahmad Lutfi Othman who have been suffering this inconvenience since March 1.

As for the people of Balakong in Selangor, they were suffering since mid-February.

This columnist had spoken to a neighbour who has three schoolgoing children who admitted that on the days when there is no water, she does the washing in her sister-in-law’s house. The same goes for another neighbour who has four daughters – she washes clothes in her relative’s house on non-water days.

These people are not lessening their twice a day clothes-washing activity and when asked why so, they replied that their children need to change clothes regularly due to being active in sports and martial arts.

A neighbour who has three small children, including an infant, had complained that the government is silly to implement water rationing as the usage will also be the same albeit the rakyat have to be inconvenienced.

This is because people will store enough water for usage on the non-water days and when the water arrives, there will be frenzied activity due to the rush in doing housework as well as storing water again.

“This water ration only gives me more ‘stretch’ and I am going to get high blood pressure because of the ‘stretch’,” said an elderly lady who manages a snack kiosk. (She probably means ‘stress’ although ‘stretch’ is also applicable as one’s energy limits are being stretched.)

Certainly our energy is stretched to the limit as we have to work fast when the water supply comes. Who knows while washing clothes halfway, the water pump spoils and suddenly we will be without water supply again. We must also organise our household in conjunction with the water ration timetable.

A long duration of water rationing will give a bad impression to foreign investors and we can ill-afford it at a time like this.

Don’t blame the weather

No one is going to curb one’s water usage especially when it concerns daily usage of water pertaining to necessary activities such as cooking, bathing, going to the toilet and washing clothes.

This columnist had interviewed 25 people affected by the rationing and their comments can be summed up as follows:

“It is the government’s duty to provide water. Why should the rakyat be inconvenienced? Look at the neighbouring countries. Why is it that our government is the only one that has failed in this water issue? We don’t care who is at fault.

“The important thing is we want clean water everyday when we turn on the tap. And don’t blame the weather! Moreover if the rationing is to continue, we will buy really large water containers so that we can store the whole dam in our house!”

This in essence sums up the angry feelings of those who are being stressed out by the water ration which is fast becoming a test of stamina, endurance and fortitude.

All those interviewed opined that it is better to let the water usage be natural instead of controlling it as at the end of the day, the difference being saved in the dams is negligible.

The BN federal government, the Pakatan Rakyat Selangor state government and the relevant water authorities must realise that the rakyat is getting angry with these water shenanigans.

Khalid Samad, the PAS Shah Alam MP, has commented that “water rationing is definitely not in line with the slogan of ‘People First’ and is certainly not an example of good governance.”

He also added that cloud seeding must be done in the Kuala Kubu Baru area where the Sungai Selangor Dam is located.

In the meantime, water ration is also carried out in Taiping, Perak, the wettest town in the Peninsular with 4,000mm of rainfall yearly. (Other towns or cities in the Peninsular receive only 2,000 to 2,500mm of rainfall per year.)

In Taiping, it rains at least four days per week so much so that the elderly folk of Taiping make it a hobby to place a bet on the hour and duration of the rainfall during the breakfast chats in the Chinese coffeeshops.

Another friend of this columnist, the aforementioned Harakah editor, Ahmad Lutfi has asked whether the government implemented water rationing because they think of it as an easy way out to solve the water problem.

The patience of those affected in this water rationing exercise (and it is indeed an exercise to store water) is wearing thin.

Bearing this in mind, all those responsible for managing the water resources had better wake up to the fact that they must do something fast to solve the problem or there might be an anti-water ration rally in the near future.

Selena Tay is a DAP member and a FMT columnist.