DAP reps seek PM’s help to solve Sandakan’s salty water woes

KOTA KINABALU – Sandakan’s problem with salty treated water has become so bad that local DAP leaders want the prime minister to intervene.

Sandakan MP Vivian Wong and Tg Papat assemblyman Datuk Frankie Poon said they handed a memorandum on the matter to Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim yesterday morning during a special meeting the prime minister had with Sabah Pakatan Harapan (PH) lawmakers in Putrajaya.

Wong and Poon said Putrajaya must step in to resolve the problem which has affected 500,000 Sandakan residents for the last six months, causing health problems and impacting businesses that rely on clean water such as car washes, salons, and eateries.

“Since the issue of saline water in Sandakan occurred in November last year, the top management of the Sabah Water Department has been unable to resolve the related problems.

“I hope the federal government will intervene immediately to address this issue and take action as soon as possible to solve this problem and provide safe drinking water to the public in Sandakan,” Wong told Sabah media.

Sabah PH is also part of the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah-led state government, which has authority over water services in the state. 

Besides salty piped water, Wong said water supply in Sandakan has been unstable in recent years. Local water treatment plants were often closed, or not functioning well, causing supply disruptions to occur almost weekly.

Wong said many constituents had complained of more cases of high-blood pressure, kidney problems, and skin allergies, as they had few options but to drink and use the salty water.

Wong and Poon said Putrajaya can intervene immediately by allocating emergency funding and with a technical team to solve the problem, which the Sabah Water Department has blamed on damage to river gates by fishermen. The river gates prevent seawater from entering intake points at treatment plants.

Wong had previously called for the immediate sacking of Water Department director Baharuhom K.K. Sogon for failing to manage the situation.

The prime minister’s special meeting with Sabah PH representatives yesterday, meanwhile, was to discuss persistent problems in the state revolving around its poor water and road infrastructure, and revenue due to the state from Putrajaya.

Besides Wong and Poon, other PH lawmakers at the meeting were Sabah PH chief Datuk Christina Liew, Upko president Datuk Ewon Benedick, Sabah DAP secretary Phoong Jin Zhe, Kota Kinabalu MP Chan Foong Hin, Sandakan MP Vivian Wong, Tuaran MP Datuk Seri Wilfred Madius Tangau, Sepanggar MP Mustapha Sakmud, Inanam assemblyman Peto Galim, Likas assemblyman Tan Lee Fatt, and Kapayan assemblyman Jannie Lasimbang.

Also present were Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Sabah & Sarawak Affairs & Special Functions) Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali, Senator Noorita Sual, former Putatan MP Awang Husaini Sahari, and lawyer Nelson Angang. – The Vibes, May 10, 2023