How serious a problem is underage driving in Malaysia?

 

In 2015, transport minister, Liow Tiong Lai, said that there were around seven million unlicensed drivers on Malaysian roads. These offenders are only identified after a crash occurs. What is the statistic for today?

On June 11, the traffic police in Klang swung into action and arrested a man and his 11-year-old son after viewing a video clip of the boy driving a car.

The video, which went viral on social media, showed the boy driving at around 6pm on Friday, along Jalan Banting-Pandamaran in Klang.

A month earlier, another case of young joyriders terrorising public roads drew furious reactions amongst Malaysians. In that incident, a six-year-old boy had driven his parent’s car for about 2.5km before he lost control of the vehicle and crashed into a lamp post along Jalan Bukit Tangga, in Langkawi. The incident occurred at 11pm.

The young driver suffered cuts on his chin but thankfully the passenger, his three-year-old brother, was unhurt.

Both boys had snuck out of their home in Kampung Padang Mengkuang while their mother was in the bathroom, and their father had gone to sleep.

These are two incidents we are aware of. Are similar cases of underage driving occurring with regularity?

Teenagers must be 17 years old before they are eligible for a licence to drive a car. How serious is the problem of underage or unlicensed driving in Malaysia?

In both the above cases, the parents claimed not to know that their cars had been driven away without permission. Did they not hear the engine starting up or the car being driven away?

In last month’s incident, what were the two young children doing up at 11 pm? Shouldn’t they have been in bed at that hour?

The Langkawi incident is being investigated under Section 42 of the Road Transport Act 1987 as well as Section 31(1)(a) of the Child Act 2001. The case involving the 11-year-old is being investigated for underage driving and for neglecting, abandoning or exposing a child to danger.

Children must be told by their parents that it is wrong to drive a vehicle without a licence. Perhaps this message can also be reinforced in schools.

By sneaking out, we can assume that the children were aware that underage driving and not asking for permission from their parents are wrong.

Do parents and children know of the dangers posed when their children drive without licences?

We are lucky that neither incident involved a crash involving other people or vehicles. What if there had been serious injuries or if someone was killed as a result?

There have been several instances in the past when parents have claimed not to know that their children had taken their cars for a jolly. In 2014, 14-year-old Aminulrasyid Amzah, from Shah Alam, who had taken his sister’s car for a joyride, was shot dead by police officers who mistook him for a robber. His friend in the front passenger seat was lucky the bullets missed him.

As part of growing up, do parents tell their young children, that before they can drive a car, they must first take driving lessons and sit for a test?

They should also impress upon their children, that without taking the lessons and passing the test, they are unlikely to be able to control a car, nor would they know the highway code.

Do the police carry out regular checks or do they wait for videos of young drivers to go viral before taking action? Do the courts punish unlicensed drivers severely to serve as a deterrent to others?

Parents play an important role. Do they instil sufficient discipline in their children? Have they no house rules, no sense of right or wrong? Do they tell their children that using anything, including the family car, without permission is wrong?

Older children who want to learn to drive should be sent for proper driving lessons so that they learn to become responsible road users.

Both parent and child should learn that road rules are to be respected because they help to make the roads safe for all.

Discipline should start at home. A negligent parent will bring up an irresponsible child. A parent who does not lead by example also teaches his child the wrong values. - FMT

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.