THE Selangor government should name a price for the acquisition of Syarikat Pengeluar Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (SPLASH) to complete the state’s water restructuring exercise and solve its water woes, Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Maximus Ongkili said.

He said Selangor Menteri Besar Azmin Ali’s administration was holding up the restructuring and was responsible for water supply disruptions.

“It’s so simple, just make an offer. It’s not the federal government who should set the price. The system is that whoever wants to buy the water asset (SPLASH) should be the one to make an offer,” Ongkili said in the Dewan Rakyat today in reply to a supplementary question by Khalid Ibrahim (Independent-Bandar Tun Razak).

Khalid, was the Selangor menteri besar who initiated the restructuring to place all water assets, treatment and distribution under the state government.

He said the federal government had previously agreed to allocate RM6.65 billion to help Selangor in the restructuring exercise. 

Khalid told the Dewan Rakyat that Putrajaya should be allowed to intervene in the process if Selangor failed to complete the deal. The federal government could then return the assets to the state government after completing the restructuring.

The federal government’s intervention is provided for under Act 655 or the Water Services Industry Act (WSIA) 2006.

SPLASH is the only water concession company that rejected Selangor’s takeover price, which was RM250 million under Khalid’s administration.

Three others, Puncak Niaga Sdn Bhd (PNSB), Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (Syabas) dan Konsortium Abbas Sdn Bhd (Abbas), had agreed to the takeover and restructuring by state entity Pengurusan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (Air Selangor).

As such, SPLASH is not under the Selangor government’s control and is why state lawmakers have said the state administration should not be blamed for water cuts.

Khalid was ousted as menteri besar in 2014 by his own party, PKR, and was replaced by Azmin.

Negotiations with SPLASH have since been extended a few times, with the latest deadline slated for July this year.

Ongkili blamed the Selangor government for being “spineless” in delaying its offer of a new price and for making the people suffer with water disruptions and rationing. – March 13, 2018.