Money alone won’t solve Kelantan’s water woes, says minister

Kelantan’s longstanding problems in supplying clean water to its residents would not be solved by simply allocating more money to the state, as there are other larger issues to be addressed.

Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad said the problem is also acknowledged by his predecessor from PAS - Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man.

“The question of (financial) allocation is definitely part of the issue but the main problem is mismanagement.

“We can discuss the question of allocation, but if Air Kelantan Sdn Bhd’s (AKSB) management and governance issues are not settled, no amount of money would resolve Kelantan’s water problems,” he said.

The minister said this during a press conference after a public dialogue session held at UiTM Machang, Kelantan, today.

He was asked to comment on water problems in the state and the state government’s complaints that it faced difficulty getting financial backing from Putrajaya to resolve the issue.

Nik Nazmi (above) said the federal government will assess the Kelantan government’s commitment and provide appropriate assistance.

“If you say there is not enough water in Kelantan, the demand for water in Kelantan is actually not as high as in other states,” he added.

Complaints about inadequate supply of clean water is a decades-old issue in Kelantan, and the state government had said it needs RM7 billion to resolve the issue.

Recently, Rantau Panjang MP Siti Zailah Mohd Yusoff resorted to sourcing water from a fire hydrant to distribute to her constituents during a drought last month.

A contractor has been fined in relation to the misuse of the fire hydrant.

Today, the state government announced plans to dig tube wells with the help of NGOs to address the ongoing hot weather.

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