THE PAS-led Kedah government has come under fire from Penang Deputy Chief Minister P. Ramasamy over its failure to resolve its longstanding water woes.

Ramasamy said Kedah Menteri Besar Muhammad Sanusi Osman should first solve the water issues in his state before picking a fight with neighbouring Penang over the resource.

“For some time, people in various parts of Kedah have been facing water shortage,” said the DAP leader in a statement today.

“In some areas in Kedah, residents have stopped receiving water since 2019. One area that is particularly affected is Bedong. More than 200 residents in the area of Bedong have been without water for more than three years.”

Kedah water authority Syarikat Air Darul Aman (Sada) had been giving lame excuses for its failure of duty, such as that the water pipes were old and prone to leakage. Ramasamy said.

Ramasamy said Kampung Sungkap Para residents in Bedong had faced a lack of water supply since 2019 but continued to receive bills for water usage.

“How on earth can there be water bills when there is no supply of water in the first place? This conundrum needs to be explained by the authorities of Kedah.

“Apart from intermittent supply, there is virtually no water for the 40 families in this place. Complaint after complaint to Sada and others have fallen on deaf ears.

“Strangely enough, about 200m away from Kampung Sungkap Para, residents have no problems getting adequate water supply,” he said.

He asked if the Kedah government was deliberately denying water supply to the residents of Kampung Sungkap Para.

“Is that subtle discrimination engaged by the water authority in Kedah, because the area falls under the control of the opposition?

“Is the PAS state government using water as a weapon against the residents in Kampung Sungkap Para?”

Ramasamy said the water-deprived villagers were unable to wash themselves or cook.

He warned that the residents would hold a protest in front of the Sada office in Alor Setar soon if the water issue was not immediately addressed.

Ramasamy said the Kedah government must first sort out this problem before picking a fight with Penang over the supply of water and to compete with its neighbour for investments.

The latter was a reference to the Kedah government’s stated intention to build a big airport in Kulim to compete with Penang.

“But unfortunately despite this grandiose plans, the state under the holier-than-thou PAS cannot even resolve the basic problem of supplying water to its people.” – April 13, 2022.