Plans to tackle river pollution stymied: ex-Span commissioners

KUALA LUMPUR (April 21): Former National Water Service Commission (Span) commissioners who were axed last week rue their removal had stymied plans to tackle issues such as pollution of rivers and water bodies, Malaysiakini reported today.

"An action plan with seven initiatives to combat river pollution was formulated following a stakeholders’ seminar in August last year.

"This included upgrading sewerage treatment plants’ capacity and requiring water utilities to prepare a water safety plan taking into account pollution risks disruptive of operations at their water treatment plants.

"Unfortunately, with this premature termination, the commission’s work and plans have been effectively stymied," eight former commissioners said in a joint statement today cited by Malaysiakini.

According to Malaysiakini, the former commissioners said several proposals to amend relevant laws to tighten regulation for enforcement and review water tariffs were supposed to be tabled at the next Parliament sitting.

All Span commissioners received a dismissal letter last Friday, which was backdated to be effective on April 10.

The former commissioners said Environment and Water Minister Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man was within his powers to make the decision but doing so without reason was "inappropriate".

They said they were not appointed due to politics, but because of their expertise and knowledge regarding water services management.

"On no account should Span be the nesting ground for political appointees.

"This will undermine its independent status and its role to provide the necessary check-and-balance mechanism to safeguard the sustainability, quality and security of our country’s precious water supply in the long term," they said.

Among the new appointees is Dungun MP Wan Hassan Mohd Ramli as the new Span chairperson. The post was formerly helmed by Klang MP Charles Santiago.

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