Don’t learn safety by accident.
– Anonymous
Road accidents of any kind, fatal or not, always bring change or changes to one’s life, the environment, even to society, especially if it involves any death. Not everything remains status quo.
A veteran of one fatal accident that took the lives of my first born daughter, 5, and my niece, 9, I have experienced such predicaments myself. Due to my cerebral concussion that lasted about five weeks, leaving me to be under treatment at both the Lau King Howe Hospital in Sibu and the Sarawak General Hospital for a total of seven weeks, I was not involved in a lot of vital things such as the funerals of the two girls and the police reports among others.
Insurance claims and other related matters were done after I totally recovered. My wife then, who was on the passenger seat next to me, was also hurt in the accident but was warded in Sibu’s Lau King Howe Hospital for one day only and discharged as she suffered only minor injuries and furthermore she had to be at our daughter’s funeral and help to run related matters.
My late daughter Garcia Ann Kejuang who succumbed to head injuries due to the road crash in 1990, was three months shy of her sixth birthday.
Members of my family were also very much involved, especially in the funerals, that were conducted in two venues, namely my longhouse in Kedap, Saratok for my daughter Garcia and my brother-in-law’s longhouse in Bawang Assan, Sibu for my niece Daphne.
We have to adjust to the sudden change, including engaging counsels to handle legal matters, especially those pertaining to court hearing and claims. Thank God, Garcia’s mom and I were the victims and were served with subpoena to be prosecution witnesses.
In 1997, seven years after the accident, I had to come to Sibu from Kuala Belait, Brunei Darussalam for a court hearing as witness. However, the other party pleaded guilty to reckless driving and causing death under Section 41 ( c ) of the Road Transport Act 1987. The culprit was sentenced to two weeks’ jail and fined RM4000 in default three months’ imprisonment.
How cheap two lives could be. I know the present penalty under Section 41 of the same Act has been increased to a maximum of 10 years’ jail and a maximum fine of RM20,000 but the Magistrates’ Court rarely imposes a maximum penalty.
My other serious road misdemeanour, thanks and no thanks to Jack Daniels, was in 2001 at Bandar Seri Begawan, going against the traffic flow at 2 am. Realising half-way I made a sudden turn going into the Lapau and hit the gate – making me the first person to do so since the beginning of time.
Such stupid act cost me my fanciful and sporty B$8.5k Daewoo Racer II and two-night cosy stay at RIPAS (Raja Isteri Pengiran Anak Saleha) Hospital that generously charged me B$1,504. Luckily I was covered by insurance and Brunei Press had to settle the bill. I had to deposit B$2,000 as bond with the police and by the time I left in 2002, the case was still pending and so was the B$2k bond.
My life was never the same. I had to report to the police station once monthly and later once in two months until I left Brunei for good in early 2002 when my dad was critically ill in Saratok. Instead of driving the flashy two-year-old Daewoo Racer II, I had to settle for an old two-door Nissan Pulsar Coupe.
In 2017, on Gawai eve, after bumping into the back of a new Axia, some cash was involved in settling the case out of court. As the culprit, I had to pay for the repair of the Axia which was quite substantial not to mention the cost of my own repair. Apart from the hassle of receiving demanding calls, I had to use public transport at times while waiting for my own car to be fully repaired.
Various quarters, especially my own family members, were sympathetic with me for they knew when the accident happened on May 31, I was forced to wake up around 4.30 am to pick my niece from the Charles Brooke Memorial Hospital after 10th Mile and then sent her to Kuching Sentral to catch a bus to Sibu. Thereafter I was in the office.
The ‘bumping’ occurred around 11.30 pm on my way back from work. By then I was really exhausted and not 100 per cent focused. Nevertheless after the incident, I realised that anything is possible on the road. Part of it could be your own doing too. Just remember that you are always vulnerable on the roads, so take extreme care at all times to avoid mishap.
The views expressed here are those of the columnist and do not necessarily represent the views of New Sarawak Tribune.
