Raw water charges required to preserve water resource - Kedah MB

 

Kedah Menteri Besar Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor today stressed that the Penang government must continue paying the tariff for raw water from Sungai Muda, Kedah, for the preservation of the water resource.

He said water catchment areas in the state need to be taken care of as best as possible to ensure there is sufficient supply not only for the people of Kedah but also Perlis and Penang.

"We have to collect (the tariff) because we want to maintain the water resource, which comes from the catchment areas. We want to preserve the water catchment areas so as to retain sufficient water supply," he said.

Sanusi was speaking to reporters after presenting laptops and data plan packages to 50 Kedah students from the B40 group at Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) in Sintok.

He was commenting on a statement by Perbadanan Bekalan Air Pulau Pinang Sdn Bhd (PBAPP) made in 2017 which has been circulating on social media since yesterday (Dec 9), in which the body presented eight reasons why Penang should not have to pay for raw water.

Among the reasons given was that the Sungai Muda Water Scheme which was officially launched by former prime minister Abdul Razak Hussein on Nov 9, 1973, did not mention the raw water charges.

Sanusi said although there was no 'black and white' agreement on the tariff in 1973, Penang still had to pay the tariff after the establishment of the Kedah State Water Resources Board (LSANK) following the enactment of the Water Services Industry Act 2006.

Asked whether the state government would seek legal action on the matter, he said it had not reached that level, and that negotiations would be held first.

- Bernama