It is the beginning of Ramadan and there is a water shortage in Jeddah. The problem is a big enough reason for the residents of Jeddah to enlist the services of an investigative agency to probe the truth of the explanations given by the Water Department each year. Hearing the same reasons year after year is as tedious as listening to the same CD repeatedly.
After this continuous suffering for the past 20 years, it is imperative for people to question two important issues. First, why have the problems at the desalination plants not been fixed after all these years? Secondly, is it logical that there is a water shortage at a time when the summer heat has decreased by seven degrees centigrade and when Saudi holidaymakers have left the city in large numbers?
In short, the problem that Jeddah suffers from is not a shortage of water but rather a lack of any logical and rational reason for it. We have very strong evidence to support this argument. This year, in the midst of the summer heat, residents were surprised that water was suddenly pumped into their houses. The reason behind the insufficiency apparently was a problem with the authority responsible for distributing water.
The public has come to realize that the excuses repeated year after year to justify a water shortage just do not exist. Therefore, the institution suddenly started pumping water and restored supplies to households.
Again at the start of the blessed month of Ramadan, we are witnessing another water shortage. Fundamentally, we can only hold on to one basic fact, which is that there is a water shortage in Jeddah for no particular reason. If there was an actual disruption in the supply at the desalination plants, then logically water would still reach our houses yet in smaller amounts and after longer intervals. In such a circumstance, water supply would not be completely stopped for two months.
People are now really worried about water shortages during the month of Ramadan that happen without any obvious reasons. We had a painful experience last Ramadan when there was a shortage for more than two weeks. The crisis was horrible and people had to wait in queues for six hours and more to get a tanker. Officials in the water authority justified the crisis by stating it would continue for one week only. However, their statement was merely issued to calm angry citizens — the problem lasted for two weeks.
The issue of water in Jeddah is a critical one and a supervisory authority needs to investigate two important points. First, to verify the truth behind there being a failure at desalination plants. Second, to look for a solution to fix the problem once and for all. After finishing these two tasks, another committee must be set up to ensure that these problems do to not recur. People of Jeddah must be told when this dilemma will come to an end.
