Dry taps ahead for Tawau residents

The government's construction of a dam to address the water problem in Tawau may just lead to newer setbacks.

TAWAU: Another parched year is in store for residents in this east coast district of Sabah despite annual assurances that the water shortage here is about to end.

Tawau MP Chua Soon Bui said that residents here should prepare for another long wait for a solution to the daily water supply disruptions.

Most residents already have settled into a water rationing routine amid intermittent flooding of the district.
Sales of water pumps and bottled water have boomed while storage tank suppliers have conducted a steady business for years as the population in this border town known for its palm oil plantations has grown.

But there is more pain in store if the recent announcement by Deputy Chief Minister-cum-Minister of Infrastructure Development Joseph Pairin Kitingan of a yet to be built dam is any indication.

Pairin said the construction of the dam was in progress to address the water supply problem in Tawau, but did not indicate the completion date of the project to keep everyone including Chua guessing.
“No definite date on its completion was given and the people are left to wait and guess. Nobody seems to be shouldering the responsibility and the people are left to suffer. Tawau people want to know the percentage of the development and when will it be completed,” she said
yesterday.

Chua said the people had waited for almost 20 years for the Barisan Nasional state government to rectify the problem and there still seemed to be no end to the woes in sight.

“The government must not forget that the basic supply of clean water and electricity is a social responsibility.
“The disparity of basic infrastructure between West Malaysia and Sabah is just too wide.

“The people are tired of dry taps and yet they are again told to wait,” she said.

Water quality questionable

The long-overdue construction of a reservoir to store water is the only long-term solution to the flooding and water shortage plaguing the district, but residents are now demanding short-term measures until the mega project is completed.

They claimed that the BN government which has been in power for almost 20 years has watched the problem recur every year for the past 15 years and done nothing to address it.

Chua said the government was making shallow promises again just as the general election is looming.
“If the ministry has the political will, I am sure the flood that clogged the suction pump would have been rectified.

“If that was due to faulty design, I am sure the government has enough funds to repair it. It’s peanuts compared to the Bakun Dam in Sarawak,” she said.

She added she would again bring up the matter in the coming parliament sitting.

Meanwhile, environmentalists fear that another problem is looming that will affect the water quality.
Leeching from a district dump site – which is not far from the Tawau River and the dam site – and safe drinking water may remain a problem.

Azman Habu