DAP chairman Lim Guan Eng has urged political parties, especially PAS, to not politicise the water issue in Penang.

He said in a statement today that the interests of Penang people should be prioritised regardless of political differences.

“It is regrettable that there are some political parties such as PAS that try to politicise water (issue) by siding with Kedah against Penang,” said the former chief minister.

“As Penangites, we should put Penang’s interests first regardless of our political differences.

“Water should not be politicised but provided to all Penangites as of right and not privilege.”

Lim also demanded that Perbadanan Bekalan Air Pulau Pinang (PBAPP) to improve on crisis management and contingency planning to overcome sudden disruption in water supply.

He said the recent water supply disruption in many parts of Penang island has caused misery to hundreds of thousands of consumers.

“This is the third time that consumers in Penang faced sudden water cuts over the last year,” he said.

“The CEO and his team will need to work hard to regain consumers’ confidence in PBAPP’s ability to supply water reliably.

“While sudden disruption in water supply is unavoidable, proper crisis management and professional contingency planning to mitigate adverse impact must be put in place.”

Last week, PBAPP advised residents in the state to store water.

The notice was issued after Sungai Muda in Kedah, which supplies water to 80% of Penang, experienced an “extreme drop” in water levels.

PBAPP, in a statement, said water levels were recorded below one metre at the Lahar Tiang intake.

“The actual cause of the drop has not been determined, but it is suspected a ‘mishap’ occurred upstream,” it said.

Previously, PBAPP issued an alert after the water levels at two key dams on Penang island dropped about 50%.

PBAPP chief executive officer K. Pathmanathan said the effective capacities of the Air Itam Dam and Teluk Bahang Dam were 51.8% and 51.3% respectively.

The effective capacities of both dams were 82.5% and 64% at the start of the year. – May 18, 2023.