The Northern Water War: A Crumbling Coalition
FIRST it was hudud, then the candidacy for Prime Minister, now it's water fiasco in Kedah and Penang.
There's no way PAS and DAP would have reached any consensus – at all. The recent spat between the two state governments of Kedah and Penang gives ample proof of how water and oil could never mix to produce something good.
Last week, Kedah's State Local Government, Water Supply, Water Resources and Energy Committee Chairman, Datuk Phahrolrazi Zawawi, said the Penang state government should start paying for the raw water supply it receives from Kedah: "Whatever happens, Penang must pay for the raw water from Kedah."
He also said that the PAS-led state government would exhaust all avenues, including seeking help from the Federal Government to ensure that proposal went through.
Phahrolrazi insisted that the Kedah state government had spent millions to maintain and conserve water catchment areas, to ensure that raw water supplied to Penang was clean and not polluted. In a sarcastic tone, he maintained that it was about time Kedah be rewarded for the sacrifices made.
"This is not the case for Penang where the state government can easily exhaust their natural resources for development and industrial purposes," Datuk Phahrulrazi further added, undoubtedly referring to Penang's rampant development under DAP.
Over in Penang, it's a different scenario for Lim Guan Eng & Co. As usual, the arrogant chief minister tries to make the controversy go away in his typical style: by blaming everyone else except his own administration:
"I believe this confusion arose from the officers in Kedah and I will leave it to the Kedah state government to sort it out."
Guan Eng further added that since the Sungai Muda flows through Penang as well, technically his administration was taking water from its own natural resources.
Penang Water Supply Corporation general manager, Jaseni Maidinsa, took the same approach. He had informed the Kedah state government that Penang would not pay any fee for using raw water from the Sungai Muda, which also flows through Penang.
In simple terms: Penang does not want to pay.
It is obvious that Kedah has since retaliated. In its 2013 Budget tabled last week, Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Azizan Abdul Razak is expected to charge Penang RM20 million every year, for the use of raw water from Kedah. This payment would be vital for Kedah to carry out development projects for the people of the northern state, he justified the Budget.
How far will this issue escalate?
The Kedah state government's willingness to ask for help from the Federal Government, shows that their administration is faced with an impending doom.
Will Penang stand to receive free raw water from its neighbour, or will Kedah stand firm in protecting its natural resources?
We will wait and see. So far what we see is just that these two parties are set on a collision course that will damage Pakatan's credibility even further.
As witnessed by the events unfolded before us these past few weeks - the Nurul Izzah’s murtad debacle, the PM candidacy squabble, the hudud conundrum, and now, water - everything sums up one conclusion:Pakatan Rakyat can never make a decision for the benefit of the rakyat.
Everything is always about and for them. At the end of the day, who will suffer most? It’s the rakyat. Who says Pakatan Rakyat is for the rakyat? It is now time to change.
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