Post-mortem on recent floods pointless

 

Every year, Malaysia experiences heavy rain and flooding, especially during the monsoon season, which lasts from November to April.

In some years, the floods inflict much damage on people, property and the countryside. There is loss of life, destruction of crops and loss of livestock when farmland is buried under feet of water.

After severe flooding which previously affected parts of Malaysia, the authorities would hold meetings and prepare detailed reports on the problems encountered. For instance, there could have been a shortage of suitable equipment, such as small inflatable craft for search and rescue, equipment failure, problems with coordinating aid or issues with rehousing those whose homes were destroyed.

Experts such as drainage and irrigation engineers, maritime officials and health professionals were engaged to present their findings and suggestions. Conclusions were drawn, recommendations taken up and the various departments or ministries told to address the issues raised.

The lack of preparedness by the Natural Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) and the failure of Putrajaya to respond quickly to requests for help from victims of the recent floods suggest that these recommendations have not been acted upon.

Klang MP Charles Santiago said that over the years, he had made several requests for funds to address the frequent flooding in his constituency. Did Putrajaya, which controls the purse strings, listen?

Many studies have also been conducted by universities on all aspects of flooding, including the causes, the impact of development, rising sea levels, maintenance of equipment at dams, retention ponds and other places holding water, and drainage and irrigation. Did the authorities act on them?

A typical comment came from the director of the Centre for Marine and Coastal Studies (CEMACS), Aileen Tan, who said proper mitigation measures should have been put in place, including monitoring and management by local authorities and communities, to prepare ahead for floods, especially at known hotspots.

According to Tan, the recent floods in Selangor were exceptional, as the weather change was abrupt, but in many other places, there should already be human intervention, especially after all the lessons we learnt over the years.

We cannot always attribute floods to climate change and not do anything to curb them, she said.

So, when someone suggests that a post-mortem on the drainage system be conducted to address the problems of flash floods in the urban areas and cities, one wonders if it is really necessary. Wouldn’t it be a waste of time and resources, especially as one suspects that previous findings were not acted upon?

Isn’t it also ironic that the speaker of the parliament refused to allow an emergency debate on the flooding?

The lackadaisical attitude of the various ministries is revealing. The rural development ministry could have alerted the local authorities to keep an eye on areas which are prone to flooding and make preparations to move people to evacuation centres if the flood waters continued to rise.

The department of irrigation and drainage should have ensured that sluices and pumps at dams were functioning and that culverts were free of debris for efficient water flow.

The health ministry could have issued warnings about the risk of water-borne diseases and infections from water contaminated by sewage and rubbish from monsoon drains.

The transport ministry could have increased monitoring of the highways and closed roads at risk of being affected by landslides.

The defence ministry could have put the armed forces on high alert, while the home minister could have done the same by making sure the police force and emergency services were fully prepared for any eventuality, especially in areas which had previously been identified as flood hotspots.

Somehow, most were clueless, slow to act and went on the defensive to try and justify their failure to respond.

Most of us are aware of how governments work. If a post-mortem were to be conducted, there will be meetings deciding to hold more meetings, before anyone were to get down to business.

We don’t need another post-mortem. We only need the government to act on previous findings and recommendations. - FMT

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