ALOR STAR: The pro road-safety group, Safety First, is targeting to reduce up to 30% the rate of road accidents especially involving motorcyclists, through the various initiatives it is organising.
Safety First advisor Datuk Seri Azman Ujang (pix) said the group was now carrying out various awareness campaigns on road safety called “Sayangi Nyawa” (Love Your Life) through various platforms especially the media.
“Every year more than 4,000 fatalities due to accidents are reported and this figure only involves instant death victims.
“Actually there are still many people who die due to accidents after several weeks or months of getting hospital treatment,” he told reporters after the presentation of Safety First Appreciation Certificates at the Hospital Sultanah Bahiyah, here today.
Azman, who is also the Chairman of the Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama), said a low accident rate would not only reduce the risk of fatalities among road users, it would also have an impact on the cost of health sector in this country.
He said that besides the big increase in cost of treatment, injuries or deaths due to traffic accidents, they also contributed to other social problems including children becoming orphans and wives becoming single mothers.
As such, it was most important to further activate efforts to reduce the rate of traffic accidents. Safety First had already cooperated with interested parties including the Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (Miros).
He said that so far Miros Chairman Datuk Suret Singh had agreed to the proposal by Safety First that the motorcycle lane be on the left side besides fixing the minimal speed for the machine.
“If the measures through campaigns are inadequate, the legal aspects must also be improved and we are confident that if the motorcycles are ridden at lower speeds, accidents will also be reduced,” he said.
Meanwhile, Safety First founder, Samad Rahim said that he had gone down on the ground and approached motorcycle as well as “kapcai” clubs to educate them on road safety.
“It is hoped that through the direct engagement with such groups, there will be greater awareness for them to look after road safety,” he said.
The Safety First group who disseminated information on road safety through the use of Whatsapp application now has access to more than 5,200 individuals including abroad and expected the number to increase within a short period.
Today, Safety First presented 11 appreciation certificates to individual experts as well as departments from Hospital Sultanah Bahiyah here, and Hospital Sultan Abdul Halim in Sungai Petani.
Kedah Health Director, Datuk Dr Norhizan Ismail said he represented all the staff in his department in expressing appreciation for the recognition and hoped to be able to continue maintaining the best performance in the health care sector.
“The recognition is also hoped to provide inspiration to the more than 16,500 staff in my department to work harder and I truly appreciate the cooperation rendered by all my staff,” he added. — Bernama
