Shafie calls for MACC probe into Sepanggar water contractor amid UMS crisis

Borneo Post

2 days ago

Shafie
KOTA KINABALU (June 5): Warisan president Datuk Seri Panglima Mohd Shafie Apdal has urged the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to launch an investigation into the contractor or water concessionaire responsible for the Sepanggar area, following the ongoing water crisis affecting Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS).
'What is their track record? Were contracts awarded transparently? Is there corruption or mismanagement at play?' Shafie questioned in a statement issued on Thursday.
He said that if the Sabah state government has nothing to hide, it should welcome MACC's involvement.
'Being open to scrutiny is the first step toward solving the real problem. Let us not insult the intelligence of Sabahans by blaming others. If this government still needs to point fingers after five years in power, then it has admitted its own incompetence. Enough is enough. Water is not a political game — it is a human right,' he stressed.
Referring to the prolonged water supply issues at UMS, Shafie said the crisis has escalated beyond a local concern and has become a national embarrassment.
'When students at a major public university are forced to go days without clean water to drink, cook, and bathe, it reflects a deep failure in governance, planning and empathy,' he said.
He also pointed out that despite nearly five years under the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) administration, no meaningful progress has been made to resolve this fundamental problem.
'If proper planning had been done, no student would still be facing water shortages in 2025 — certainly not in lecture halls, not in hostels, and not in Sabah.'
He highlighted that UMS is not a remote school but a national institution with over 23,000 students and staff who rely on the R13 tank, which also serves Hospital Likas and surrounding commercial areas.
Shafie revealed that when water levels in the tank fall below 0.5 metres, the entire supply system fails — yet repeated complaints and formal letters to the Sabah State Water Department (JANS) have reportedly gone unanswered.
'Instead of action, we have only seen denials and deflections,' he said.
More troubling, he added, is the discrepancy between public statements made by JANS claiming sufficient water supply, and those of UMS Vice-Chancellor Prof Datuk Dr Kasim Mansor, who contradicted those claims.
'This raises serious concerns about transparency and internal accountability within JANS,' said Shafie.
He described the hardships faced by students, who have had to seek alternative housing, spend on bottled water, and queue with pails just to bathe, all while trying to pursue their education.
'It's no wonder the students are protesting. They are demanding basic human dignity. We are not making accusations — we are calling for transparency,' Shafie concluded.