AN elderly man is sitting on a bench with a boy in what appears to be a park in the heart of Singapore city. He gestures at a stream where crystal clear water flows.

Water, the man with the sad face tells his grandson, is Singapore’s most precious and scarce commodity.

A deep voice booms: “To keep Singapore going, the water must continue to flow.”

The two-minute video at Singapore’s Newater Visitor Centre is many years old, but its message has an urgency which resonates deeply with most Singaporeans today as Malaysia – currently the city state’s cheapest and most reliable source of water supply – is bent on reviving contentious negotiations over a decades-old water agreement.

Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad had a long, tumultuous relationship with Singapore’s founding father, the late Lee Kuan Yew, clashing over everything from airspace to the economy over the years. Throughout it all, however, water remained the major sticking point in bilateral relations since the separation of the two countries in 1963.

After Dr Mahathir stepped down in 2002 after 22 years in power, the two countries enjoyed years of relatively amiable ties, with the added bonus of water security for Singapore.

But Dr Mahathir is back. Shortly after coming into power on May 9, the prime minister raised eyebrows when he said in media interviews that he is looking to reopen talks into the 1962 water deal, calling the price of 3 sen per 1,000 gallons at which Malaysia sells its raw water to the republic “manifestly ridiculous”.

Seen as aggressive at best, hostile at worst by the leaders and citizens across the Causeway, Dr Mahathir’s stance has pricked Singapore’s vulnerable spot – its water sustainability.

But this time, Singapore has Newater, ultra-clean, high-grade reclaimed water produced from recycled wastewater.

Newater was introduced in 2003 to the Singaporean public, which largely reacted with revulsion to the idea of consuming recycled wastewater.

“The challenge then was not so much convincing them of the technology but assuring the public that the water is safe to consume,” said Lim, who mans the reception desk at the visitor centre.

However, he said, public acceptance had grown in “leaps and bounds” over the past 15 years.

Today, said Lim, Singaporeans were even more aware of the fact that they might “one day need to rely on this as their main source of water”.

The republic currently gets it water needs met via four sources, or what it calls the four national taps: water from its limited catchment areas, imported water from Johor, desalinated seawater and Newater.

Due to its small land size, Singapore lacks adequate water catchment areas, making water security an area requiring critical attention.

While the government has built five Newater plants supplying up to 40% of its current needs, the pressure is on for it to speed up its goal of achieving water sustainability by 2060.

“We still get Singaporeans who come here and say they imagine they can smell something in the water and that they can’t get themselves to drink it,” Lim at Newater said with a shrug.

“Wait until they are at risk not having any water to drink at all.”

He said the younger generation of Singaporeans have yet to take the “threat” of Dr Mahathir controlling the taps seriously.

“Those of us who were around when Dr Mahathir was prime minister the first time are aware of our vulnerability.”

Philip, a local tour guide who brings groups of local and foreign visitors to the centre almost daily, said there was a recent increase in interest learning about Newater’s treatment process.

“People are now aware that we have this great technology and want to know more about how we’re filtering and cleaning the water,” said the 55-year-old.

At a forum earlier this week in Singapore, Dr Joseph Liow, a leading political analyst on Southeast Asian governments, said he believed Dr Mahathir’s recent statements on raising the price of water stemmed from a habit of provoking Singapore, and would unlikely lead to more than a few heated exchanges between the two countries.

“Dr Mahathir has always liked to ‘cucuk’ (antagonise) Singapore… he doesn’t miss an opportunity to ‘cucuk’,” Liow said at the forum.

He said the resurfacing of the water issue after so many years had a silver lining – unifying Singaporeans.

“There’s nothing that rallies Singaporeans more than (the subject of) water,” Liow said.

Mandy Cheong, a Singaporean at the Newater Visitor Centre, said she believed her country was now self-sufficient in terms of its water needs.

“Our government has been faced with the threat of Malaysia cutting off its water since Dr Mahathir’s first time in power, and since then, we have done a lot. We are more than ready this time,” she said, gesturing to the large pipes and filtration systems at the centre.

“I believe we are definitely already self-sufficient, but we can’t let Dr Mahathir get away with it. If we back down now, he will win.

“So, we have to hold on to our rights in the agreement. Besides, if we can get cheap water for many more years, why not?” – August 16, 2018.