KUALA LUMPUR: Contractors caught setting up illegal water connections will now face fines of up to RM1 million, a tenfold increase, after the Dewan Rakyat approved amendments to the Water Services Industry (Amendment) Bill 2024 yesterday (Dec 12).
Deputy Energy Transition and Water Transformation Minister Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir said that the amendments also include prison sentences of up to 10 years for offenders.
"Previously, the penalty under the existing act was a fine of up to RM100,000 and imprisonment for up to one year. But now, the fine has been raised to RM1 million, and the prison sentence can be up to 10 years. This is a tenfold increase!" the Johor Baru member of parliament said in a Facebook post yesterday (Dec 12).
The Dewan Rakyat passed the amendment to strengthen the regulation of the water services industry, addressing critical issues such as water source pollution, which disrupts supply and causes hardship to consumers.
The amendment focuses on 13 provisions, including heavier penalties and the addition of new offences, allowing courts to order those responsible for pollution to cover the cost of restoring water supply systems.
It also aims to improve Section 121 to make water source pollution, which leads to the temporary halting or closure of water supply systems, an offence.
Additionally, the amendment increases fines as a preventive measure, as pollution of water supply systems significantly affects users.
The Act now introduces a new subsection (1A) under Section 61, prohibiting the discharge of illegal effluent and other substances into septic tanks.