After ‘basikal lajak’ furore, Johor DAP man says parents should be answerable for children’s actions

JOHOR BARU, April 18 — Johor DAP leader Dr Boo Cheng Hau today said parents as adults should be accountable for their children’s safety and wellbeing, following renewed controversy over a fatal “basikal lajak” accident in the state.

He said more holistic solutions should be considered to make adults responsible for the safety and wellbeing of their children.

“I feel passionate about the issue of the eight teenage basikal lajak riders’ death in Johor Baru as I used to work as a medical officer at Johor Baru’s Hospital Sultanah Aminah (HSA) Neurosurgery Department here between 1993 and 1994.

“During the course of my duty, I had witnessed many cases of severe head injuries in children resulting in death that could have been prevented had the adults, including the parents, taken full responsibility in looking after their children’s’ safety,” Dr Boo said in a statement today.

The former Johor DAP chief recalled two examples of children who suffered fatal mishaps while under the care of their parents.

He said the first case involved a road incident in which a young girl died due to severe head trauma.

“One of the victims was sticking her head out of the car window when her father was driving. Her head hit right on a tree branch while the car was passing near it, causing her to sustain severe head injury and died,” he said.

Dr Boo cited another incident in which a girl was hit by a 10-tonne trailer in a village road and died of severe head injuries.

“The 10-tonne trailer had no right to the village road, and the truck driver had apparently failed to protect other road users, including children from the tragic accident,” he said.

Dr Boo said that in both cases the parents should be responsible for disciplining their own children and protecting their lives and safety.

He added that, if necessary, the police should apply the Child Act 2001 to ensure that parents and legal guardians were being responsible for the childrens’ safety to prevent unwanted harm and deaths due to their own negligence.

The “basikal lajak” case mentioned in Dr Boo’s statement refers to a 2017 accident in which a driver collided with eight teenagers riding the modified bicycles on a dim Johor highway.