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52 water meters go missing |
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Written by Metro - Central
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Thursday, 10 August 2006 |
 SYARIKAT Bekalan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (Syabas) sent a team from its Wilayah Persekutuan office to Taman Suria Jaya, Cheras, recently after receiving complaints that 52 water meters had gone missing on Tuesday morning.
The officers from the water company immediately set up a make-shift booth at the home of Marzenah Din, a resident of Jalan Bunga Mawar 8, to record particulars of the those whose meters had been stolen.
Syabas assured them that new meters would be fixed soon.
The thefts were discovered in the morning when some of the residents
woke up to find their main taps dry. Checking, they discovered that
their water meters had gone missing. No one saw the thieves, but the
residents believe that they removed the meters between 2am and 6am.
Following a lot of hue and cry from the residents, Balakong assemblyman
Datuk Hoh Hee Lee called for an ad hoc dialogue with the residents and
Syabas representatives at the housing estate
Residents wanted answers from Syabas. In particular, they wanted to be assured that the meters would be replaced soon.
“The residents will have no water unless the meters are replaced,''
said Hoh, adding that they had lodged several police reports already.
Hoh said several residents had resorted to fixing blue plastic pipes to
reconnect supply from the main pipe. It is an illegal act, but the
residents have become desperate.
Syabas meter unit supervisor K. Thanabala told the residents not to act against the law, but pay RM60.20 for new meters.
“Once they have paid the sum, we will install the meters within 24 hours,'' Thanabala promised.
But, the residents aren't satisfied with the explanation.
“Why must we pay for meters that were placed outside our homes,'' asked
Marzenah. “And, we cannot be expected to watch over the device all the
time.''
Marzenah said even if Syabas insisted that the residents pay for new
meters, the company should at least consider a discounted price.
“If the police can give offenders a discount on summonses, why can't Syabas do the same,'' she said.
“In any case, we are not the ones who stole the meters nor did we lose them on purpose, so why should we be penalised?''
Another resident, Kelvin Ng, said even if payment were made for new
meters what guarantee was there that the new meters would not go
missing.
“If the thieves can get away with it once, they can do so again,'' he said. “Are we to keep on paying for the new ones?''
Thanabalan said the residents could buy clamps and locks to ensure
their water meters did not go missing again. He said the residents were
custodians of the water meters though the devices belong to Syabas.
To this, resident Leong Kwong Mun said Syabas should provide the clamps and locks.
Ng agreed. “We pay for the water we use, we pay for stolen meters and
now we are asked to pay for the locks,'' he said. “It's just not
fair.''
Read the complete article about the missing watermeters here.
Discuss about the missing watermeters here.
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 10 August 2006 )
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