O’ water, where art thou?

 

I reckon there’s not a single happy soul in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor as we head into the weekend! Individuals, small businesses, large corporations… literally, everyone is totally peeved.

Our water authorities, in their infinite wisdom, have chosen this Wednesday to Saturday to disrupt water supply to 998 areas in the Klang Valley.

Of course, we need to upgrade our critical assets, like the Sungai Selangor Water Treatment Plant, which supplies precious water for the capital city, and its surrounding areas.

No one in their right mind thinks this is not for the eventual common good of our sprawling metropolis.

In fact, many applaud the water authorities for giving us two weeks’ notice so that we can prepare ourselves. In the past year, our taps have run dry on at least five occasions, without any prior warning.

This time round, Air Selangor put out an early notice on Oct 1.

Their PR team explained that these works were first scheduled in 2019, then postponed to 2020 due to water pollution episodes.

For good measure, they also declared that these works were approved by the Suruhanjaya Perkhidmatan Air Negara (SPAN) and that they were doing it to “…ensure that the water supply distribution system is at the best level for the convenience of consumers in the future.”

Sounds quite reasonable, right? But, here’s the thing though.

For two years, they have postponed these “critical works”. But they have decided that now is the opportune time to shut our water supply down for approximately four full-days.

They seriously worked out that “now” is ostensibly the best time. “Now” is when most businesses have finally been able to open up again, after the four-month extended lockdown.

Within a month of re-opening, albeit with caution, and following strict protocols, suddenly it dawned on our water authorities that “now” is the best time for critical works to be done.

The very same works that have been postponed for two years. Yes, “now”!

Apart from issuing out an early notice of the scheduled supply disruption, Air Selangor is graciously mobilising 105 water tankers to the affected areas.

Right, we have 105 tankers for approximately eight million residents in the Klang Valley. Do the math, it translates as one tanker per 76,190 residents. Go figure!

Even more thoughtfully, for businesses, they have made four local water filling stations available.

But the catch is (forgive the pun), you need to bring your own water tanker, and purchase the water from them. I wonder how many businesses have spare water tankers lying around.

There you have it. Everything was meticulously planned, prioritising the consumer’s needs.

Instead of being simply grateful for the sterling work our water authorities are doing, most residents in our capital city are just so irate.

Could it be that we are all a bit grumpy because this has come “now”, of all times?

As we inch our way out of this dastardly pandemic and we slowly see some light at the end of the tunnel, our water authorities have offered us yet another challenge to triumph over.

Could it be that many are asking why these “critical” works were not done during the four months when businesses were closed? This is a fair question, right?

Everything was shut down, except for essential services. The supply of water is an essential service. Therefore, the people manning this treatment plant would have been going to work while most of us were stuck at home.

Could it be that this decision to repair now, defies the rationality of not doing it when we were all living “smaller” lives, ergo needing less water?

In the four months that we were locked down, many of us worked from home, which allowed us to regulate our lives better. We did less laundry, cooked more prudently, and we could have used less water.

Could it be that as businesses struggle to stay afloat, “now” is the worst time to have no water?

I am thinking as a business owner here. I have a restaurant where water supply is vital. We have been told they will cut off our supply from Wednesday to Saturday.

Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays are our busiest days. This water interruption will set my business back a lot, especially since we are only just slowly recovering after the lockdown.

I think, most of all, everyone is just fatigued and exasperated with the seeming lack of good governance when we need it most. Governance is so much more than just about ensuring financial success and longevity.

It is also about guiding and supporting the very fabric of Malaysian society. The powers that be, in our country, should “set the tone” for the post-pandemic recovery.

For example, if the authorities told us that critical works were needed at this water treatment plant, but they would hold it off for six months to allow all of us, individuals and businesses, to get back on our feet again before disrupting our water supply, most of us would have been supportive!

Why can’t our authorities just do the right thing, and take responsibility for their decisions, by being compassionate to us, the people?

I am so upset; I need a glass of water now! O’ water, where art thou? - FMT

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.