Disbelief, outrage over water rationing

Disbelief, outrage over water rationing

KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysians reacted with a mixture of disbelief and outrage over the announcement that even more water cuts would be headed their way beginning this Friday.

Having been forced to change their lifestyles to weather the water crisis, residents and business owners alike were demanding that the authorities figure out a way to improve the situation fast.

"It's frustrating. We had to change our lifestyles to suit this never-ending rationing," said Shannon Selvaraju, 26, of Bukit Bandaraya, Bangsar.

Her family, she said, had to take drastic measures, including using disposable underwear and sending clothes to the laundry, to limit water usage at home.

"We had to eat out more as the limited water we stored at home was for bathing and cleaning."

Her reaction came in light of yesterday's announcement by the National Water Services Commission (SPAN) and Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (Syabas) that, come Friday, the next phase of water rationing would be implemented.

This time, it would affect 6.7 million people in a continuation of the water crisis, which had plagued mostly Selangor residents since March 2.

The move will affect households in nine districts -- Gombak, Petaling, Klang / Shah Alam, Kuala Selangor, Hulu Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Kuala Langat, Hulu Langat and Sepang.

An additional 620,237 households in Selangor, Putrajaya and Kuala Lumpur will also face water cuts this Friday.

Helen Fernandez, a legal assistant from Segambut, said her family-of-three spent more on food delivery and mineral water.

She said it was annoying to be forced to be cautious about water usage.

"It's ridiculous and embarrassing when we have visitors and worry if they would want to use the toilet."

Salak South resident C.C. Tan said the water rationing would be acceptable if the authorities kept to the schedule.

"Unfortunately, our experience over the past month showed they don't always keep to the schedule, nor do they do it in a timely manner," said the 39-year-old.

Business owners were also being pushed to the brink. Kelly Wong, a hair salon operator in USJ6, Subang Jaya, predicted that her business would suffer drastically.

"Every aspect of my business needs water. I will have no choice but to limit my services to just haircuts. I don't see the point in storing water to wash hair because I would need the supply to come from a shower head.

"It won't be acceptable to use water scoops to wash my customers' hair. I need both warm and hot water to wash hair."

The Malaysian Employers Federation believed that if the crisis continued, it could lead to potential investors shying away from Malaysia in the long-run.

Its executive director, Shamsuddin Bardan, said it was ironic that an important utility like water repeatedly faced shortages as the nation moved forward towards a fully-developed status.

"Numerous large industries need constant water supply for their production and manufacturing needs. It would be not only inconvenient but costly for them to purchase water from other sources as it would drive up their overhead and operating costs."

He called on all quarters to look for alternate ways to harness the resources in the most efficient way possible. Otherwise, the water shortage could deter investors.

"All our efforts to woo them will be wasted."

 

Additional reporting by Dawn Chan and Halim Said

 

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