Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye
SIBU: A member of Malaysian Road Safety Council Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye called on all those involved in the transport and leisure industry to help overcome the perennial road tragedies.
Lee said yesterday they needed to show will and resolve to put an end to the road carnage in the country.
“We have to learn from past tragedies and put into practice the recommendations made to prevent future tragedies.
“We have to assure foreign tourists that our transport system is safe and our roads are safe,” he told The Borneo Post in an email reply. He was commenting on the horrific bus tragedy where 37 people were killed while 16 others injured when a vehicle with 53 people on board plunged into a 60-metre deep ravine at Km3.5 from Genting Highlands on Thursday.
Lee stressed that some very basic issues had to be given serious attention to safeguard the safety of people.
Elaborating, he said it was imperative to determine whether our bus drivers were overworked and underpaid and had to go on drugs to make more trips and earn enough for their survival.
“Are all buses regularly checked and maintained to ensure they are roadworthy? Is the relevant authority convinced that the inspection of buses is satisfactorily carried out?” he asked when dwelling on basic issues to be revisited. Lee said it was important to know what further measures were needed to embrace a safety culture among employers and employees.
“Are all the dangerous and accident-prone stretches of our roads addressed and acted upon to improve them?
“We must have the political will to address these issues for the sake of road safety,” Lee concluded.