‘Black water’ from taps makes PBS rep see red

Residents in more than 50 villages in the Matunggong state constituency claim the water supplied to their houses is getting murkier.

KOTA KINABALU: A Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) leader has demanded that the state government address the degrading water quality in her constituency in Sabah’s northern Kudat district.

Matunggong assemblywoman Julita Majungki said residents in more than 50 villages have claimed that the water supplied to them was “murkier than before”.

Matunggong state assemblyman Julita Majungki.

She said there had been a water crisis in her constituency previously but this has worsened.

“This involves three mukims in my area, namely Tambuluran, Nangka Pinawantai and Matunggong. More than 5,000 residents are affected by this problem,” she told FMT.

“The villagers would like to know the main reason for the current water crisis, especially at the Milau Dam, in the last couple of months. The water has turned darker since a month ago.”

Majungki questioned whether the termination of contracts involving six companies, operating 58 water treatment plants, was a factor in this issue.

“Yes we had a water crisis since before but the situation has gotten worse ever since the contracts were terminated in January.”

She said the people are also worried whether the issue had been brought by inexperienced staff operating the water treatment plants as a result of this termination of contracts.

“This problem is actually not confined to the Matunggong sub-district but all the way to Kudat because the water is from the same source, which is the Milau Dam.

“We hope the authorities will provide us with a proper explanation because the villagers’ health is at stake here. The Sabah infrastructure development ministry must explain to the people why this is happening,” Majungki said.

Last December, Sabah Infrastructure Development Minister Peter Anthony said the Sabah government had terminated 58 concessions for water treatment after claiming the 20-year agreements the companies signed were lopsided.

Anthony said the concessions were awarded to six companies by the previous state government.

Under the agreements, the concessionaires were paid RM3.7 billion to oversee and manage 58 water treatment plants and dams for 20 years. - FMT