By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, Jan 17: The Road Transport Act 1987 should be amended to impose criminal liability on the registered owners of motor vehicles who consented to the use of their motor vehicles by unlicensed riders or drivers, leading to accidents.
Parti Bumi Kenyalang (PBK) president Voon Lee Shan said this in response to the multi-vehicle road accident at Stutong Baru on Tuesday (Jan 14) caused by a 16-year-old boy who didn’t have a license which claimed the lives of five people.
He said the accident could have been prevented had the registered owner of the vehicle stopped or had the keys to the vehicle kept from the boy.
“As it is now, no one could point fingers at the registered owner whose vehicle was used by an unlicensed juvenile in the accident. Under Section 51 of the Road Transport Act 1987, it becomes a defence to the owner of the vehicle to say that the taking out of the vehicle was without his or her consent by the unlicensed driver.
“The owner could also plead no knowledge of the keys being taken away to drive the vehicle,” he said in a statement.
At the same time, he also said those below the age of legibility to obtain a driving licence who drive recklessly or cause harm should be banned for life from possessing any driving licence at all.
“At the moment, the Road Transport Act 1987 does not provide for this penalty or sanction. Those below the age of eligibility to obtain a driving licence are not only a nuisance but a source of danger to other road users.
“They should be banned from obtaining any driving licence for at least five years from the date of conviction,” he said. — DayakDaily
