KOTA KINABALU: Even as floodwaters in Sabah’s Beaufort district receded after over a week, temperatures ran high on social media after a frustrated local tagged his assemblyman in a post.
Bernard Ng, 38, returned to his village in Klias from Singapore for Chinese New Year last week only to find that it had been without electricity and water supply for several days.
In a social media post, he tagged Klias assemblyman Datuk Isnin Aliasnih, asking whether or not arrangements had been made to help residents.
He also claimed that the three-term representative from Parti Gagasan Rakyat Sabah was nowhere to be seen throughout the disaster.
Isnin's response was to tell Ng to clean up his own mess and not leave it for others before returning to Singapore.
The post spread rapidly among locals, with many criticising the assemblyman for his reply.
In his defence, Isnin said he had visited villages and distributed food baskets and other aid to victims.
He explained that water and electricity disruptions during floods were normal as pumps and utility equipment were often submerged.
"Supply has to be shut down to prevent accidents and further damage... and to ensure that it can resume after the water subsides," he added.
Ng maintained that as a voter and a local who grew up in Beaufort, he had the right to seek answers from his assemblyman, and said the tone of the response was inappropriate.
As of 8am Monday (March 2), the number of evacuees in Beaufort has dropped to 483 people from 93 villages across the district.
