KOTA KINABALU: Sabah's commitment to tackling water woes is commendable, said Gabungan Rakyat Sabah's (GRS) Penampang Youth chief Datuk Ceasar Mandela Malakun.
He said the GRS-led government had implemented various initiatives to address short- and long-term water problems in the past three years.
Among them is the project to increase the capacity of the Telibong II Water Treatment Plant from 80 million litres per day to 160 million litres per day, involving main pipeline channels and storage tanks.
This is to keep up with the high population growth and rapid development in northern and central Sabah.
He said the project would increase the supply and storage capacity from 94.6 million litres to 163.3 million litres.
The government is also replacing main pipelines, combating water theft, addressing non-revenue water problems, upgrading water treatment plants and implementing integrity and anti-corruption initiatives in the Sabah Water Department to prevent misconduct.
"The seriousness of the state government under the leadership of Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor and Deputy Chief Minister and Works Minister Datuk Shahelmey Yahya in addressing water issue is noteworthy," Mandela said.
He said the state government should be given space to ensure the people's basic needs were addressed as the legacies of past administrations pose a lot of challenges.
"With good work plans and synergy between the state and federal governments, the process will undoubtedly be facilitated."
He hoped the people would understand the water cuts or disruptions that might occur when the Sabah Water Department needs to carry out works.
He reminded everyone that all the measures aim to ensure the sustainability of the water system and improving operations and services was crucial for this.