the Israel-UMNO issue Water politics UMNO position weakened on the water issue

The Federal Government has made an initial decision not to allow the Selangor government to take over the operations of state water concessionaire Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (Syabas). The special cabinet committee on the Selangor water issue agreed at its meeting that there are “substantial and procedural” matters that have not been met to allow Selangor to takeover Syabas. However, Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin (right) said the final decision would be made after the attorney-general deliberates on the matter. “He has been instructed to call a meeting on this matter this afternoon,” he said after chairing a three-hour meeting in Putrajaya today. Among the issues that stand in the way of the takeover, he said, is the state government’s failure to compensate Syabas after refusing a scheduled increase in the water tariff. “The matter is now pending in court as Syabas is suing Selangor,” he said.Selangor had in 2009 refused to allow water tariffs to go up unless Syabas reduced its non-revenue water which currently involves one-third of supply. Asked why Selangor was not invited to attend the discussion today, Muhyiddin said this was a Federal-level meeting. “There are several matters which will have to involve Selangor but so far, this is (within) our scope of power,” he said. The committee came to the decision after consultations with the Energy, Green Technology and Water and National Water Services Commission. Syabas Issue: Elizabeth Wong responds Putrajaya’s admission that water rationing was not necessary in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur has proven that the issue was a political gimmick to discredit the Selangor government, state executive council member Elizabeth Wong said today. She also said that Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (Syabas) has been turned into an UMNO tool to coerce the Selangor government into approving the construction of the Sungai Langat Water Treatment Plant or Langat 2. Putrajaya has said it will tender out the RM3.6 billion plant despite Selangor’s objections, citing hefty costs for constructing a new plant that will take two years to complete. “The Federal Government has no real solution in improving the supply and management of treated water. In fact, they are trying to sabotage Selangor government efforts to do the right thing to protect people’s interests,” she said in a statement today. Wong said Putrajaya did not enumerate Langat 2’s capability to address the water shortage whereas Selangor already has a RM225 million plan for water mitigation. “What is needed is an independent committee to decide which project is more effective in solving the shortage of treated water at a low cost,” she added. She told the Barisan Nasional (BN) Federal Government to acknowledge its mistake when signing the water privatisation agreement in 2004, saying the error cannot be rectified until now. “The Selangor government has the right to take over Syabas under the Water Supply Industry Act 2006. The Federal Government’s decision to stop this effort shows that the BN government is partial to corporate companies linked to UMNO rather than protecting the people’s interests,” she said. Syabas is controlled by Puncak Niaga Bhd that is run by corporate figure Tan Sri Rozali Ismail (right), who is the Selangor UMNO treasurer. Wong also said that the Chairman of the special Cabinet committee on water, Deputy Prime Miniser Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, has no experience in the matter and unable to contribute good ideas for water management. “When he was the Johor Mentri Besar, he made the state water tariffs among the highest in the country,” she added.She pointed out that efforts to privatise water supply in Johor to tycoon Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary’s MMC Corp Bhd will add to the “people’s burden”. “The Johor people will face an unreasonable water tariff, unlike those in Selangor who receive free water. The BN government wants to pawn the rights of Johor people, but Pakatan Rakyat in Selangor will not keep quiet against those making a profit from people’s suffering,” the Bukit Lanjan assemblyman said. Syed Mokhtar’s MMC conglomerate is seeking to form a special purpose vehicle with Pengurusan Aset Air Bhd (PAAB), a wholly-owned company under the Minister of Finance Incorporated, to take over the country’s water assets, The Edge Financial Daily reported today. Muhyiddin told reporters earlier today that the proposed Langat 2 water treatment plant was important to prevent Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya from reaching critical water supply levels by 2014. He said the Federal Government will refer the Selangor government’s planned takeover of Syabas to the Attorney-General as it involved legal technicalities. The Selangor government has also said it will pay to upgrade two water treatment plants to increase water supply if Putrajaya continued to delay transferring RM225 million for the project. The two plants, Sungai Selangor Plant 1 (SSP1) and Sungai Selangor Plant 2 (SSP2), are currently running below their maximum capacity output due to infrastructural limitations to channel treated water out to the water supply network.  Dana berbilion ringgit yang akan digunakan untuk membina projek Langat 2 harusnya digunakan untuk membaiki sistem agih air Selangor supaya air terawat yang dibazirkan setiap hari dapat diselamatkan. Ini kerana air yang dicuri atau hilang akibat paip yang bocor, atau dikenali sebagai NRW lebih 30 peratus dari jumlah keseluruhan air terawat yang diedarkan di Selangor. Cadangan itu disuarakan oleh Abdullah Mohamad, seorang peserta awam pada Majlis Dialog Air Selangor 2012 di Dewan Sivik Majlis Bandaraya Petaling Jaya (MBPJ) semalam. Di laporkan sebelum ini, Kerajaan Pusat ingin meneruskan projek Langat 2 yang akan menelan belanja RM 6 bilion bagi memindahkan air mentah dari Pahang ke Selangor. Masalah dihadapi di logi seperti paip lama yang rosak dan sebagainya, saya rasa perlu dibaiki segera supaya masalah yang timbul dapat diatasi segera. “Untuk tujuan itu peruntukan bagi projek Langat 2 boleh digunakan bagi kerja baik pulih. Cara ini lebih bagus. Lagi satu jika kita menghadapi masalah bekalan air terawat maka ia bukan masalah di empangan tetapi masalah Syabas yang gagal membekalkan air kepada pengguna. Syabas seharusnya berusaha meningkatkan bekalan air untuk disalurkan kepada semua pengguna dan bukannya memikirkan untuk melaksanakan projek Langat 2,” katanya. Majlis tersebut dipengerusikan Exco Kesihatan, Pekerja Ladang, Kemiskinan dan Kerajaan Prihatin Selangor, Dr Xavier Jayakumar. Ia turut dihadiri Ketua Pegawai Eksekutif Suruhanjaya Perkhidmatan Air Negara (SPAN) Datuk Teo Yen Hua. Bagi Ahli Parlimen Hulu Langat, Dr Che Rosli Che Mat, isu utama yang perlu diberikan keutamaan ialah bekalan air mencukupi bgi kegunaan orang ramai. “Isunya di sini pengguna perlukan air dan pihak berkuasa perlu menyalurkan air mengikut kapasiti ditetapkan. Perancangan mesti dilakukan supaya tidak timbul masalah bekalan air. “Usaha perlu dilakukan bagi meningkat bekalan air di empangan agar proses air terawat dapat dijalankan tanpa sebarang masalah,” katanya.  MB, you have the rakyat behind you and let federal behind the syabas. and see who will win at the end of the day.These are the hard core of 'rent seeking' Bumiputras! is there a director from the state sitting in Puncak Niaga and SYABAS if so what the hell is he doing, is he not reporting it to the State or is he also agree with the Board. If the Board approves, it carries Mohd. Zin you not only look like an idiot but you also talk like an idiot. that this is all a covert plan by dUMNO to paint a poor picture of the Selangor Pakatan government. The 'evil' plan of UMNO is to take back Selangor as it is a gold mine for them to plunder. Of course, they will deny all this and say that MB Khalid is inefficient. Mind you, more stories will be 'exposed' by dUMNO as we approach the 13th GE. People of Selangor, do not be hoodwinked by the allegedly corrupted ruling dUMNO/BN politicians. Stay calm and we shall see the wind of change sweep the country. God willing.  Umno business is like that. Lose money but pay the crony first. from MAS to now Puncak Niaga, all the same. Anywhere in the open market, if the company loses $75million, the CEO is sacked and made to pay.Water shortage has been one of the issue use by UMNO to wrestle back Selangor though Pakatan had proven them wrong. I can see that what Pakatan is doing is for the good of the rakyat. Since they took over, Selangorians have been enjoying free water. Perhaps, UMNO feel the pinch that the money from the rakyat's water bill payment does not flow to their cronies.Why do I sense there is some strong arm Umno warlord behind the scene here? We will wait for the full account.Check all local companies. Some majority holders as CEO become richer and the minority shareholders become poorer. The shares become diluted but the CEO becomes a billionaire. The securities commission hasn't worked on that. These people have no responsibility to the people. The poor PM says 'people first",but it didn't hit their brains. They signed contracts for salries and bonuses but couldn't care for the companies. Some companies have been brought to their knees and then directors purchase them for a song. Any working brains want to do research that 75% of Puncak Niaga and SYABAS owned by Tan Sri Rozali, only 30% owned by the State, So who has the say? A new provision should be incorporated into the Companies Act 1965 to regulate public companies or GLCs to pay their executive directors a sum not exceeding a certain percentage of its profit deemed fair and reasonable. Where such companies are running at a loss, only a certain lesser fixed sum deemed fair and reasonable should be paid. Such a provision in the law is timely considering that it is not uncommon for executive directors of failing companies being paid large disproportionate sums even as the companies are failing and would soon go under. A committee should be formed to work out the details of the provision.Rozali does not need a court case to show his income. If he wants to be open he himself can provide the detailed account of his income from both Syabas and Puncak Niaga. Whe the Company losses Rm75 million how can the CEO/Director draw 8.4 million? Doesn't this show who are the rent seekers, in the guise of responsible Bumiputera Bosses. They are blood suckers and on what basis can he draw such salary/ Fee/ Bonus?? How is it that Umno and Muhyiddin can use these imbeciles to WIN back Selangor. Don't dream Umno!!They are practicing the same model of management as the clownish leadership of UMNO BARU federal government just like MAS! A change is the only solution to them all!!Simply CORRUPT Prectices-where is the SEC? FIC? CIC? JKR?LLN? Malaysia is plauged with corruption -bad governance and ZERO tranparencey-the next Zimbabwe!! Pariiah country as far as investors are concerned-we attract conmen to the country! Tee Yong should investigate whether If Rozali was indeed paid that amount and to consider whether he should challenge Rozpli to debate whether the hefty salary is justified BN opposition in Selangor looks bleak and about to disintegrate into the sewage. KPS and Selangor should get a judgement debtors order from the court and seize the assets of Syabas for non payment. Then let the experts run Syabas  Wonder where all the money goes since they are just the distributor, and syabas never give us such a long time to pay up. So you are saying because of the rakyat, Syabas no need to pay at all also does not matter. That why , they offer to take control of Syabas since you all dont know how to manage  When Syabas can pay its CEO RM400,000 a month I fail to see the rationale behind not paying their dues to KPS on time and in full. What is the fcuking CEO doing anyway?  Desalination plants... emit high levels of air pollution and greenhouse gases, potentially damaging marine life with the discharge of brine and residual salt back into the sea [EPA]

Regional water politics has once again featured Israel, this time with South Sudan, where Israel Military Industries Ltd., on behalf of the Israeli government, signed an agreement with the South Sudanese government to provide the latter with water infrastructure and technology development. The two countries agreed to co-operate on areas of desalination, irrigation, water transport and purification. It would appear that one of the strategic advantages for Israel in pursuing such a deal, aside from a potential oil deal, is to be able to play a part in the hydro-politics of the Nile, creating a potential point of leverage over Egypt. Israel clearly has much to offer within the water infrastructure and technology sectors. And it leads one to ask questions about how the strides Israel has taken domestically in areas such as desalination will impact the Israel-Palestine water issue. In my previous Al Jazeera op-ed, I argued that the realities on the ground concerning the water issue necessitated a one-state solution, if there is to be a just and equitable resolution to the situation. Yet some posed the suggestion that Israel's highly ambitious desalination master plan, largely enabled by the discovery and exploitation of substantial gas reserves off the coast of Israel can potentially remove the water issue from the list of major stumbling blocks to attaining equitable terms for peace within a two-state framework.   The Middle East's water war Aggressive desalination project Israel has indeed been pursuing an aggressive desalinationproject. With the aim of providing around 600 million cubic metres/ year (MCM/yr) through desalinated seawater by 2015, Israel has constructed three major desalination plants, with a fourth and fifth slated for completion in 2013. The Haderaplant, completed in 2010, has a present capacity of around 130 MCM/yr, making it the largest reverse osmosis plant in the world. The Sodek plant that is to be completed next year will surpass Hadera with a capacity of 150 MCM/yr. In all, desalination should provide 22.5 per cent of all potable water demand by 2015. And in the long term, between the years 2040 and 2050, Israel has plans to invest around $15bn to reach a capacity of 1.75 billion cubic meters/ year and provide 41 per cent of Israel's potable water demand. Such ambitious targets are not unrealistic for Israel. They have been pioneers in the water sector for decades. Attributable to them is drip irrigation technology, a method for irrigating crops that uses dramatically less water than the traditional flood irrigation method.  Israel also treats the vast majority of their wastewater and effluent, using 80 per cent of it for agriculture, by far the highest in the world. And in desalination, the Israelis have largely pioneered reverse osmosis technology, a method that is environmentally cleaner and less fuel intensive than the traditional multi-stage flash method. With recent discoveries of offshore natural gas fields, the prospect of running these desalination plants become both more feasible and more secure. But even with Israel meeting these ambitious targets, the notion that this will allow for any change vis-a-vis the Palestinians and the ongoing exploitation of their water resources is highly unlikely. There are several reasons this is the case: For one, desalination is simply too expensive and even in the long term the most it can do is cover Israel's growing demand, rather than eat away at the share of natural resources that Israelis consume. Israel uses about 40 MCM/yr more than the natural replenishment rate of the ground and surface water they exploit, and it is assumed this will continue into 2020 despite the construction of more desalination plants, as population and economic growth will offset the increase in capacity. In the short and medium term, desalination can only supplement existing sources and allow for Israel to meet demand in times of drought, which are becoming more frequent with climate change. Anything in excess will likely be used to rehabilitate existing aquifers and lakes, rather than replace them as a source. Many experts have already pointed out that far more effective, immediate and economically feasible results can be attained by tackling consumer demand, improving wastewater use and improving infrastructure such as leaking. Repercussions on the environment   Gulf desalination plants harming the seas There are also environmental considerations that need to be taken into account by the Israelis. Desalination can have significant repercussions on the environment, and much of those repercussions are not fully understood yet. What is known is that desalination plants, even those that use reverse osmosis, emit high levels of air pollution and greenhouse gases, can potentially damage marine life with the discharge of brine and residual salt back into the sea and can damage valuable coastal land areas. As environmental awareness grows and the ramifications of marine and air pollution are better understood, we can expect some sort of backlash from the population that may limit the extent to which the Israelis will turn to desalination. Furthermore, greater reliance on desalination presents security risks that Israel is unlikely to overlook. Relying heavily on such massive structures that are vulnerable to attack decreases the likelihood they will be allowed to become the main or only source of freshwater.  And lastly, greater desalination capacity will not cause the Israelis to alter the status quo vis-a-vis the Palestinians for one key reason; Israel does not have to. The leverage that the Palestinians and their advocates in the region and around the world have over Israel's water policy is unfortunately minimal. And even the soft power that is exerted by NGOs, activists, and even governments rarely translate into any shift in policy by the Israelis. Like most states, Israel subjects itself to the tenets of power politics, and one can assume Israel would not voluntarily give up the hegemonic position it enjoys over its neighbours' resources, even if it did begin utilising alternate sources. The growing uncertainties in Syria and Lebanon make this even more unlikely, as both countries are riparians to Israel. Ironically in fact, Israel may find its negotiating position weakened on the water issue the more its desalination capacity grows and the reasons for restricting Palestinians' access to water becomes more blatant and less justified. This logic can possibly explain why Israel has ardently supported plans for a desalination plant in Gaza. Not only would this undercut Palestinian claims to their aquifers, it would also make Gazans even more vulnerable to Israel, as the Israelis have a notorious history of deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure in the area. And so considering all these factors, I see no reason to assume that in the coming decades gas and desalination will play a role significant enough to reduce Israeli dependence on water originating in Palestine, and the issue will continue to be one of the many barriers to achieving a just two-state solution.