GEORGE TOWN – The Penang government is ready to meet the Kedah menteri besar in court if Kedah still wants to take legal action over payment for raw water extraction from Sg Muda.
Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said Sg Muda is not exclusively owned by Kedah, with part of the river owned by Penang.
“Kedah Menteri Besar Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor has no basis to demand payment from Penang for extracting raw water from Sg Muda,” he said.
“In fact, the facts clearly show that Penang has the right to extract raw water from Sg Muda without payment to Kedah, as Sg Muda is a river that flows through Kedah and Penang,” he said in a statement today.
Chow said the fact that Sg Muda flows through Penang is documented in the Kedah and Penang (Border Change) Act 1985 (Act 325) and enshrined as an act in Article 2 of the federal constitution.
In fact, he said, the state enactment passed by Kedah and Penang in 1985 also places the boundaries of the states along the central part of the river line.
“The Penang government will defend Penang’s riparian water rights,” he said referring to a legal convention of governance of territory along a body of water.
Yesterday, The Vibes reported that the Kedah government is exploring legal options over its demand to be paid for neighbouring Penang’s use of water from its own side of Sg Muda.
Sanusi had said that possible legal actions have been outlined by the Kedah State Water Resources Board.
Kedah had previously demanded RM50 million a year from Penang as payment for extracting raw water from Sg Muda since 2010.
This is despite how Penang draws water from the side of the river within its own borders.
In December, the Penang government urged Putrajaya to intervene in a plan announced by Sanusi that will allow for large-scale rare earth elements exploration in sensitive water catchment areas in Kedah. – The Vibes, January 13, 2021
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