Politik Air di Negeri Perlis dalam Pilihan Raya Umum (PRU) ke-14

The Water Politic in the State of Perlis in the 14th General Election (GE)

Abstract

The state of Perlis is experiencing serious water supply problems due to the inability of the authorities to provide adequate water supply for the use of the local people. Perlis, therefore, depends on the source of raw water from Kedah, which is a state that is also facing the issue of water security guarantee due to Perlis’ failure to pay for the water supplied. Furthermore, the quality of water supply in Perlis is relatively poor and is always below the standards set by the Ministry of Water, Land and Natural Resources (KATS) based on the National Water Quality Indicators. This unsatisfactory water quality lasted until the 14th General Election (GE14). Therefore, this research would like to see to what extent the issue of water availability affects the course of GE14 in Perlis. This research is using qualitative method  that includes  in-depth study of resources obtained from libraries, interviews, and national archives. This study found that the issue of water supply in Perlis has received less attention from the political parties contesting in GE14 in that state. This situation is not surprising as the State Government in Perlis had admitted before that they could not afford to develop the water supply system in Perlis. In fact, this matter did not affect their performance in GE14 because they continued to be given the mandate by the local peoples to govern Perlis following their victory in GE14. Given that discussions related to water politics have received less attention among researchers, it is clear that this study has its own significance. This study will give a fresh point of view to research related to water issues in our country. Moreover, the findings of this study can be used as an initial reference in discussing water supply issues and problems that surrounded the political scene of this country.

Received: 1 May 2022

Reviewed: 25 May 2022

Accepted: 2 June 2022