‘WATER CUT NOT ACT OF SABOTAGE’
Viral message an attempt to distract from Selangor govt’s incompetence, says ministry
THE Energy, Green Technology and Water Ministry has dismissed a viral message claiming that the water disruption in Klang Valley was an act of sabotage by the Federal Government.
It has since emerged that the fake news item was first used in 2013 and 2014.
The ministry’s secretary-general, Datuk Seri Dr Zaini Ujang, said yesterday the dirty tactic was an attempt to distract from the Selangor government’s incompetent management of its water industry.
“The water reserve margin in Selangor last year was at zero per cent, which was identified as among the main factors behind the state’s water problems.
“In the event of a burst pipe, damaged water treatment plant or sudden increase in water demand, such as during festive seasons, there is a high possibility that certain areas in Selangor would experience water disruptions,” he said.
The viral message, bearing the words “Edisi Kantoi”, showed an image of a water pipe and text claiming that the water disruption was an act of sabotage by the Federal Government.
It claimed that a Puncak Niaga staff member and water treatment plant workers said the authorities had closed off 20 main pipes supplying water to trigger the wrath of the public against the state government.
Zaini said water rationing was the main indicator in measuring the quality of Selangor’s water service. The PKR-led state has recorded the highest number of water disruption cases (259,537 cases in 2016) compared with 3,778 cases in Penang and 2,267 cases in Melaka.
Zaini said the solution to Selangor’s water crisis could be done via three mechanisms. This involved having a bigger supply of treated water by building new water treatment plants, as well as reducing the state’s loss of non-revenue water from the present rate of 32 per cent to the national target of 25 per cent.
“The final mechanism is by reducing the use of water per capita in the state, which stands at 234 litres per capita daily, to the national average of 209 litres per capita daily.”
Yesterday, the New Straits Times had quoted Zaini as saying that the continuing water crisis was caused by Selangor’s delay in migrating to a restructured and more efficient water supply management system.
He said the issue stemmed from Selangor’s water system having optimised its supply in terms of source, treatment and water distribution. The system required a structural upgrade to boost (the state’s) water assets to accommodate increasing demand.
Based on the Malaysia Water Industry Guide 2017 annual report, Selangor (including Kuala Lumpur) registered the highest number of water supply-related complaints.
Experts had also criticised the state government for focusing on providing free water for Selangor folk for the sake of political popularity, instead of using funds provided by the Federal Government to revamp its water industry.