KUCHING: Sarawak Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg will bring up the water woes at Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) to the Higher Education Ministry in response to an open letter from a student.
In a statement on Tuesday (May 27), the Sarawak Premier's Office said Abang Johari thanked the Sarawakian student at UMS for the letter but could not take direct action as the matter lay outside his jurisdiction.
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"Nevertheless, the Premier will raise the issue for the information and action of Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir," the statement said.
The Star reported on Monday (May 26) that an open letter by a Sarawakian student to Abang Johari on the university's water woes had gone viral.
Muhammad Rasul Rozmiezan, a second-year sociology student from Kuching, said he wrote the letter to voice the concerns of Sarawakian students and draw national attention to the issue.
"I understand the Premier’s limitations, but I believe he can help amplify our voices.
"What he does to help Sarawakians can also benefit Sabahans,” he said in the letter, adding that students had gone without consistent water supply for days,
“Sometimes I had to bathe with bottled water or pay RM1 to shower at a shopping mall,” he said.
ALSO READ: UMS water supply issue to be resolved
Sabah Works Minister Datuk Shahelmey Yahya said the state government was working with the Water Department (JANS) and UMS to resolve the issue.
Meanwhile, Deputy Higher Education Minister Datuk Mustapha Sakmud said the current supply from JANS remained inconsistent, while the tube well system could not meet UMS’s daily demand of five million litres.
"I’ve appealed to the Chief Minister to give UMS priority in the water distribution schedule," he said.
