More than 30 years ago, the news editor was startled when he saw a reporter’s raw copy, which was written along these lines: “We could have poisoned half of Kuala Lumpur yesterday. There is no security in most of the reservoirs in the city and in most cases, there are holes in the perimeter fencing allowing easy access.” This was a follow-up after the body of a schoolboy was found floating in a reservoir in Cheras.
The late MA Razman changed the intro, saying that “you should not be giving ideas to terrorists”. These days, no one needs to give such ideas. The government has demonstrated how vulnerable our water system is and to what extent. It is now suggesting “sabotage” as an excuse for the current water woes suffered by more than a million consumers.
When folks in Petaling Jaya and the surrounding areas endured a four-day water disruption last month, many residents had an option – to drive to friends’ houses in the Federal Territory where water was flowing through their taps.
The current inter-district travel restrictions no longer make such journeys possible. Telling the policemen manning the roadblock that “saya pergi cari air untuk mandi” (I am going to find water to have a bath) is not likely to hold water (pun intended).
While we have already endured another round of dry taps for three days and still counting, the powers-that-be, the water company and other self-appointed guardians of our waterways are still continuing with the same old tales.
Short of blaming Lim Guan Eng (he’s no longer the finance minister) and the DAP (which is part of the state government), everyone and everything has been thrown under the bus.
First, it was a burst main at the treatment plant, then to pollution at the water intake. Then came the “morning sickness” when Environment and Water Minister Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man reasoned that the water was polluted in the early hours of the morning.
But then came yet another claim: The Selangor government “did not rule out the possibility that there was an element of sabotage that caused the pollution of raw water sources”.
Its super sleuth - State Environment, Tourism and Green Technology, Orang Asli and Non-Islamic Affairs Committee chairperson Hee Loy Sian - provided a theory which even Sherlock Holmes would be proud about.
"This is because this pollution occurred at night and on a Sunday, usually the factories do not operate on Sunday ... we have lodged a police report so that the police can open an investigation paper to determine whether there is an element of sabotage or otherwise," Malaysiakini quoted Hee as saying.
While the blame game and the finger-pointing continues, consumers continue to suffer without water and there seems to be no permanent solution, except citing reasons which are not plausible and impossible to swallow.
Enough is enough. Two major disruptions in six weeks may be nothing to write home about in a Third World country, but in Malaysia, which claims among others to be number one in the region for the usage of e-wallet. On the other end, it is also number one for people loading and unloading child pornography!
This game has gone too far and the public no longer believes anything that is being said. If it is the factories that are polluting, what is being done about it? Then, there’s this argument that there are at least 3,000 unlicensed factories in Selangor. If they are unlicensed (and illegal at that), why are they being allowed to operate?
For a good measure, the state government is seen endorsing the existence of illegal factories and last month it gave one final chance to legalise their operations by end of this year. After the four-day disruption last month, Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari said the Selangor government would not hesitate to demolish building structures that have an impact on environmental pollution if they (landowners and illegal factories) fail to do so within the stipulated period
“We have been offering them to carry out the legalisation process since 2008. The decision of the last State Executive Council in 2018 had decided to extend the action until 2020. After 2020, we will demolish,” Amirudin was quoted as saying.
Can we assume that for 12 long years, the state government did nothing to put an end to this? Is it confirming that for 12 long years, it has been pussy-footing with illegal factories, thereby putting the welfare and health of residents at risk? For 12 long years, have officials been closing one eye (or both) to what is happening along our waterways? Why legalise them when they were built illegally in the first place?
Now, they want to buy drones costing RM20 million to check on polluting factories. What happened to the old-and-tested method of unannounced physical inspections, on-the-spot orders to close and penalties for illegal operations? When was this last carried out? Didn’t they follow up after checking and prosecuting the owners of one factory last month? Didn’t they go beyond that? Why?
Short of pointing out to the kau tim mentality which is prevalent in the system, how else can one explain such lax attitudes and non-enforcement of the laws?
How can the chest-thumping claims to be the “most developed state” continue when basic amenities can’t even be provided? Isn’t safe, clean and uninterrupted supply of water a fundamental right of citizens?
If the amount of time, effort and money which has been spent on current politicking is expanded on serving the rakyat, this problem would not have arisen. What will take to get the people in high positions to get off their high horses and work for the people?
As much as our politicians hate to be compared to that little Red Dot down south, it is worth re-visiting what its former prime minister, the late Lee Kuan Yew, had to say: “Everything works, whether it’s water, electricity, gas, telephone, telexes - it just has to work. If it doesn’t work, I want to know why and if I am not satisfied and I often am not, the chief goes and I have to find another chief. Firing the chief is simple.”
Will a few heads roll?
R NADESWARAN is among the more than a million affected by the water disruption and hopes that this will be the last. Comments: citizen.nades22@gmail.com - Mkini
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.
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