MOHD Shafie Apdal today told Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Maximus Ongkili to own up to his weaknesses over the high incidence of non-revenue water (NRW) in the country.

The Parti Warisan Sabah president said Ongkili had, in Parliament on Thursday, tried to blame him, in his capacity as former rural and regional development minister, over the high incidence of NRW in Sabah.

He also said the minister in charge of the nation’s treated water supply had “conveniently” blamed Selangor Menteri Besar Mohamed Azmin Ali for the state’s recent water crisis.

NRW refers to the wastage of water due to ageing pipes and frequent leakages.

“The minister should be ashamed of himself for bungling his facts, and his efforts to shift blame onto me, for something that did not come under my purview when I was regional and rural development minister, have exposed his naivety and rabid desire to tarnish my image, now that I am in the opposition.

“In Selangor, he conveniently blamed the menteri besar for the water crisis there, when everyone knows who is at fault.

“In Sabah, if anything goes wrong, it is Shafie’s fault. When it suits them, they lay blame on others. It is outright ridiculous, as the privatisation of water is handled by his ministry,” he said during a gathering in Kg Kebawang, Sindumin, today.

On Thursday, Ongkili had accused Shafie of failing to address the NRW problem in Sabah, despite getting a lot of allocation during his time as minister.

Sabah has suffered the highest incidence of NRW in the country, and despite RM171 million in grants having been allocated to fix the issue, the problem persists, with water leakages in the state shooting up to 52%.

The Semporna MP has dared the Marudu lawmaker to repeat his statement outside Parliament, and advised the latter to check his facts with Sabah Infrastructure Development Minister and Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) president Joseph Pairin Kitingan on whether the state Water Department is under the purview of the Rural and Regional Development Ministry.

Shafie said the ministry is only in charge of providing infrastructure, like pipes.

He said water meters and treated water supply, among others, are provided by the state Water Department, therefore, matters relating to water supply fall under the state government’s authority.

He said Ongkili’s poor performance and inability to resolve the state’s water woes are among the reasons Pairin has not passed on the reins of the PBS leadership to his No. 2.

Other states are also facing NRW issues, but require a smaller sum to resolve them. They are Perlis (RM80.8 million), Kedah (RM48.7 million), Pahang (RM87.43 million), Kelantan (RM69.63 million), Sarawak (RM70.74 million) and the Federal Territory of Labuan (RM13 million). – March 24, 2018.