SMART PARENTING: Put a stop to these

cycles of accidents

NO parent should have to bury their child. Last week, there were at least two widely covered
accidents that saw some young lives prematurely taken by tragic accidents.

On Tuesday morning, newspapers published news of the death of two people (and one injured)
from an accident at the Batu Tiga toll plaza. The car, driven by a 23-year-old man, was believed
to have gone out of control and rammed into the toll plaza. Two others in the car, a 21-year-old
man and a 20-year-old woman, died at the scene.

My condolences to the family but I wonder whether this is a lesson for us all. The Internet was
abuzz with several theories, one of which was that the driver may have been driving at high
speed as he went through the narrow, abolished toll lanes. It’s possible as I have witnessed such
behaviour on several occasions driving through the area. I have seen drivers doing this and I’ve
often sighed in relief when they pass through the lane safely. But I’ve always known that it’s an
accident waiting to happen.
I’ve also observed that many motorists, whether on cars or bikes, generally tend to speed up
whenever they have the chance. Overtaking is their objective. It doesn’t matter what the road
condition is. Rain or shine, wide or narrow road, they will overtake either from the left or the
right

What’s even more horrifying is when they’re doing this in full view of their young passengers.
Not only are they putting these young innocent lives at risk, they’re also effectively being the
worst example to our future drivers. It’s really upsetting when adults fail to see the connection.
It’s little wonder that the aggressive driving cycle continues.

HAVE CONTROL

Later that day, another news of a senseless accident emerged. “I was stunned. My son had
collapsed in front of me, his head was smashed.” Those were the words of a mother, M. S.
Kasthuribai, recalling the tragic moment her teenage son, S. Sathiwaran, died after being struck
on the head by a chair, thrown from an upper floor of the Pantai Dalam People’s Housing Project.

Again, an unnecessary death... Apparently, it’s common for people on the higher floors to simply
chuck their rubbish down without thinking of others.

Again, I’m quite sure that the little ones are watching. They have effectively learnt some terrible
and dangerous habits from supposedly mature adults.

It’s a sad state of affairs that may repeat itself. While we may not be able to directly change their
behaviour, we do have control and responsibility over our children. When more and more people
are good role models, hopefully these cycles of senseless but avoidable accidents will cease.

Zaid Mohamad coaches and trains parents to experience happier homes and more productive
workplaces. Reach him at zaid@smartparents.com.my