On 28 October, 24-year-old sales promoter, Sam Ke Ting, was acquitted of driving recklessly, before a road accident which resulted in the deaths of eight teenagers. The accident happened at Jalan Lingkaran Dalam, in Johore Baru, at 3.20 am on 18 February 2017.
Let us look at the role of the parents in this tragedy.
Children should not be out at night, and racing illegally on the highway, at 3 am in the morning. Were the parents unaware of their childrens’ whereabouts?
Start at the beginning
Religious men have ‘corrupted’ the Malay mind, so that he is unable to accept any hard truths.
When you tell Malay parents to practice family planning, they will say, “Children are a gift from God”.
If children are a gift from God, why does the child, or parent, treat his life as a cheap, worthless commodity?
When you tell the Malay that driving recklessly may cause an accident, he will say, “If it is God’s will, then so be it”.
What a pity that the hadith, “Seeking knowledge is obligatory upon every Muslim”, which when combined with the opportunity to correct one’s sins and mistakes to improve oneself, is lost on the Malay. Why are so many Malays recalcitrant?
An accident waiting to happen
The bicycling tragedy in Johor Baru was an accident waiting to happen. The police have tried unsuccessfully, on numerous occasions, to disperse the cyclists. The boys on their modified bikes quickly disappear at the first sign of a police car.
The cyclists should not be on the highway. They should not be bunched in the middle of the road, or congregate on the central divider. The boys should be in bed well before 3am, as they have school the next day. Instead, these boys, and some of their parents, expect public understanding.
To you and I, these cyclists or Mat Basikals, are mere Mat Rempits-in-training.
Here are two responses from parents of some of the injured cyclists.
One father, whose son sustained injuries to the hip, admitted that he had been reluctant to “excessively control” his son. He feared that his son would be “stressed out” whenever the teenager was admonished by his parents.
His son, had, on several occasions, disobeyed him and sneaked out of the house at night.
One mother begged the public to stop blaming the parents and the victims. She felt that it was unfair of the public to blame the parents for neglecting their children.
She is right. The children were not neglected. They were over-indulged.
Parents who refuse to discipline their children
There are many instances in daily life in which the Malay parent stubbornly refuses to discipline their children. March them to bed, from an early age, if they are naughty. Make them adhere to simple house rules. Gate them for a few days, and stop them from meeting their friends, if need be. Stop their pocket money if necessary.
What is the usual Malay parent’s response when someone points out that the Malay child is doing something dangerous, like playing on the streets?
If the boy meets with an accident, the parent says that it is his takdir (destiny). There is no mention of taking preventative measures, about playing safely within the confines of the garden, or in the house.
Some Malays fail to distinguish between quality and quantity, and large families are the bane of the Malays. The affirmative action policies do not appear to address the rising poverty in the Malay community.
In the olden days, high child mortality rates and poor provision of healthcare meant that children who survived beyond five years of age were rare. Large families addressed the shortage of labour in the fields, and the care of elderly parents.
Having a large family is not sustainable in today’s world. Whether they live in a town, or the village, children need a good education, good nutrition, a stable family life and love.
What they really mean
When Malays say that they want large families, it is just an excuse not to practise family planning.
When a Malay man demands a virgin bride, it is because he fears being told that his technique is rubbish.
When a Malay excuses his wrongdoings with “takdir tuhan” (Divine intervention) he is absolving himself of any responsibility.
It is time the Malays had a rethink, and learnt to be in control of their own destiny.
Punish the parents, especially those whose children are under the age of 18, and are involved in illegal racing. Perhaps, the parents will be moved to discipline their children and resolve the danger they cause on the roads.
Mat Basikals will learn to ride kapcais and then become Mat Rempits.
Note: Subsequent investigations showed that Sam was not speeding and was not using her mobile phone.
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Here is footage that was sent to me a few days ago, about another group of Mat Basikals in KL. Will they ever learn? Will their parents ever learn?
In JB, in front of the Palace water fountain in Jalan Sekudai, I have observed young couples with TODDLERS in tow, crossing the road to the car park. Parents go first, and the toddler trying to catch up and crossing the road BY HIMSELF. I stopped and looked at them. The mother then ran back to pick up the toddler. Is this what they mean by ‘valuing life’. The mat rempits and mat lajaks are still a problem. It has always been the perception that discipline is missing in the upbringing of their children. There is also no attention to education. For many years there were no malay children in kindergartens in JB(except for one or two) until the 90s. How can malays move up the ladder when these dysfunctions are so common.
Their mentality is that government will take care of them. They have special rights.