Chua: Extend National Energy Commission to Sabah

Tawau, Sep 13, 2009: Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) Vice President and Member of Parliament for Tawau Datuk Chua Soon Bui, urged the Prime Minister, YAB Dato' Sri Najib bin Tun Razak to extend the National Energy Commission to Sabah in view of the repeated power disruptions that have haunted the people of Sabah especially Tawau for more than 20 years. Up to now, no assurance has been given by the SESB/TNB on regular and reliable power supply.

She asked how much longer does the people of Sabah have to suffer and how much longer does the business sectors have to 'succumb' to huge losses.

Chua said energy is a national security item and it is the government's duty to supply and protect it for the interests of all Malaysians including Sabahans. She also said while TNB celebrated its 60 glorious years of powering the nation on the 1/9/2009 with its continuous resilience and commitment to powering the nation's progress and enhancing the quality of the life of Malaysians, why can't TNB do the same in Sabah with its long experience in national power supply?

"The National Energy Commission should take up the task to re-evaluate the power planning, management, maintenance, enforcement of SESB/TNB in Sabah, so that a holistic approach can be implemented to achieve high quality services comparable with those of peninsular Malaysia.

"The Malaysians in Sabah are tired and fed up with all the excuses or temporary measures of SESB/TNB.
She urged the government to be sensitive to the suffering of the people especially, at the height of the power disruption, everybody experienced around 7 ‘dark hours' daily at the beginning of August, as it is the real concern of the people. Although the supply has improved in the past 2 weeks, she has continued to receive complaints that the power supply is still unstable in the rural areas.

She hoped that the SESB/TNB would ensure that the Malaysians in Sabah especially in Tawau would be able to celebrate a 'bright' Hari Raya Aidilfitri like all other Malaysians in the peninsular Malaysia, in line with PM's motto of ‘One Malaysia, People First, Performance Now'.

She also urged the Prime Minister, YAB Dato' Sri Najib bin Tun Razak to enforce KPI (Key Performance Indicators) through the relevant ministry on SESB/TNB so that Sabah can enjoy a continuous and reliable power supply within a stated time frame. She hoped the power disruptions would be a nightmare of the past for the people of Sabah through close monitoring of the KPI.

On the related matter of proposals of power supply for the East Coast of Sabah, she strongly felt that it is a matter of immediate concern because the present west-east coast grid is said to be unstable, that means the power supply at the end of the grid, i.e. Tawau power supply can't rely on grid system and it suffers the most during load shielding. The planning of a power plant in the East coast is of utmost urgency.

On the recent announcement by the chief minister of Sabah, YAB Datuk Musa Aman, with the option of setting up a 100MW Geothermal power plant in Andrassy, Balung, she urged the government to seek views from foreign experts from Japan. Apparently, the geothermal reservoirs with underground chambers where hot water is turned into steam by the magma of the earth core may contain traces of dangerous elements such as mercury and arsenic, which if leaked into the river will be hazardous.

Studies on geothermal power were done more than 10 years ago in Tawau and it was found non-viable due to several environment hazards. Fluids drawn from deep earth core may carry a mixture of gases, notably carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulphide pollutants can contribute to global warming, acid rain etc.

She said she doesn't want to see a repeated case of the coal power plant announced by SESB/TNB without the blessings of the people. It would be a worse political time bomb that could cost the ruling government in the coming elections as voiced out by both the ruling and opposition YBs and leaders. Don't lie to the people because the people always know the truth

"Apart from the problem of frequent power breakdowns, the people of Sabah also face difficulties due to cuts in water supply, unsatisfactory roads and other infrastructures. It is also the government's responsibility to provide the above facilities to improve the quality of life for the Sabahans. It is hope that with the PM's visit to Sabah, the PM and his central government will give immediate attention to the problem of lack of infrastructures in Sabah. In line with the PM's wish to prioritise the people, it's high time now to deliver these long awaited facilities to the Sabahans who are sick and tired of empty promises. It is hoped that the performance of the government is prioritised; concrete actions are always welcome, not empty promises," Chua said.

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