Now, who can make a difference?

Today my rolling eyes were stopped abruptly, like a car before a traffic light that suddenly turns red, by an article that appeared on The Sun “High Accident Rate a Headache: Tee Keat”. The new Transport Minister Ong Tee Keat suggested that the problem of road accidents is a headache for him. And he advised Malaysians to change their attitude.

I drive. It irks me a lot to once again read about the blames that our politicians put on the drivers of the Malaysian roads. The advertising campaigns that the government run on television and other print media, well known for its tagline “You can make a difference”, seem to suggest that the drivers and their attitudes are the only reason for the torrents of road accidents in the country. Hence they say it in a rather patronizing fashion: You (pointing their fingers at us) can make a difference.

First and foremost, is it really logical that our drivers possess a different set of attitude compared to our counterparts in other countries, which has less accident cases? Is it true that we are so different and morally-ill compared to the rest of the world? Are we a weird bunch of people with a serious defect in our DNAs that we do not value our own safety, our own lives, and our love ones? The minister’s statement seems to suggest that we are monkeys while the rest of the world are normal homo sapiens.

Our cultures might differ from that of others, but some things are just universal. We value our lives. While I am not dispelling the notion that some of the car accidents are caused by irresponsible act of some drivers (drink driving for instance), I want to suggest that it is not only we the drivers are not entirely to be blamed for the sheer number of accidents.

I am sure there are drivers who struggle to find their way, especially in a new place. The minister should drive around to experience things himself, if he haven’t already. Navigation is a nightmare. Road signs are confusing. Trees are blocking the road signs. And in the midst of searching our way, we lose concentration and risk ourselves to accidents.

What about bus accident? Each festive season, it is not at all surprising to see bus accidents caused by bus drivers who had torrents of unsettled summons. Are we to be blamed for that? Or should those in power who are negligent enough be responsible for it?

What about road design? It is our basic right to have well-design roads. We have every right to expect that our road surface will be as smooth as it can get, that at any time the road that we are bound to approach are visible to our naked eye. But our roads are filled with dangerous curves, narrow roads, and potholes. Sometimes, we can’t even see the road ahead of us. Potholes just appear from nowhere. It is our basic human nature to avoid all forms of distractions that came along the way. Even when we see a piece of wood on the road (which is also common lately especially on roads frequented by lorries), we would be responding by switching lanes in the nick of time. And when we try to avoid, we risk causing accidents.

What about the issuance of new driving licenses? It is an open secret that in the event you failed any component of the driving test, an “officer” will call you thereafter and ask for that “little sum” that will then guarantee you a spot on the list of new Malaysian drivers.

As the new minister vowed to address this problem, I hope he does an honest assessment of the true causes of the problem, and that includes the acknowledgement that some things just cannot be blamed on the Malaysian drivers. It is not just we the drivers who should make a difference. To those in power, you can make a difference too.

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