Beaufort folks desperate for water
Published on: Tuesday, January 21, 2020
By: Ahmad Apong
BEAUFORT: The State Ministry of Infrastructure Development is urged to intervene and resolve the critical shortage of water experienced in almost all areas here for nearly a week.
People have taken to social media to vent their frustration and anger against the State Water Department.
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Many are desperate as the supply they have stored in their tanks have almost exhausted. The department has cited broken pumps and dirty tanks that need to be cleaned as the reason.
They demanded that the State Government resolve this problem, especially the elected representatives in Beaufort, Sipitang, Klias and Lumadan.
A NGO activist chairman said they may stage a protests against the Water Department.
“It is hoped that the Director of the Sabah Water Department will not sit idly by before the people act because they are angry with the Department,” he said.
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“Whenever supply is cut off, these are the excuses they give, as if there is no solution and until when will it be cleared.”
This time many areas including the Klias and the entire Lumadan area are affected. Besides households, they include restaurant operators and hawkers.
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“We lost income because we could not do business to sell our cakes and have gone through five days of stored water in the tank,” said Norhayani Awang
She said she lost between RM50 and RM100 a day and if this continued, she and other traders would suffer more.
According to a government staff the problem of water supply is synonymous with Beaufort.
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“Just mention the water problem and one will be reminded of the Beaufort area and this problem is a hindrance to the development of this area which will not attract investors.”
“This is not even the dry season and Padas River water level is also not shallow so the people want the government to act quickly to address the problem”.