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There are many instances in life where things are regarded as two parts of the same thing. They may seem unrelated but they are really two sides of the same coin. Rewards and punishments is an example where both are used to control people, and usually neither works very well.

I read an article on ‘Why flout traffic laws?’ in the Sun newspaper. I am in total agreement with the writer but what attracts me is the point where ‘Malaysians must obey the law even when there is no traffic policeman in sight. If Malaysia is to be acknowledged as a developed country by 2020, the citizens must obey all laws.’

Yes, the consensus is we have to obey all laws. Laws exist for some basic reasons and all of them can be abused at any time. Laws created under the Harm Principle holds that the actions of individuals should only be limited to prevent harm to other individuals.

Let us look at traffic lights in Malaysia. There are many instances where the traffic management system is at fault when lights tend to stay red too long or at green for too short, inundating the road with long queues. What about dangerous stretches, improper road maintenance, confusing signage, road closure by authorities, flooding, etc, etc?

The above are cases where actions (or the lack of) of authorities that can cause harm or inconveniences to other individuals/rakyat.

Lives have been lost due to dangerous stretches and improper road maintenance. Improper signage wastes time and petrol and causes people to be late for meetings. Same with road closures. Flooding may cause damages to vehicles.

Are there laws to protect the rakyat?

We have the Public Authorities Protection Act 1948 relating to the protection of persons acting in the execution of statutory and other public duties. We also have in the Constitution of Malaysia, Article 8: Equality Before the Law and Non-Discrimination where all persons are equal before the law and entitled to the equal protection of the law.

If there aren’t, our lawmakers should enact one and if there are, the authorities too must obey all laws.

Laws cuts both ways ie to affect both sides of an issue equally.

One thing or the purpose of traffic light, it is a signaling device to control flows of traffic and its safe movement, thus avoiding collisions.

One wonders at 3am in the morning when there are no vehicles approaching and the red light stays very long, one has to patiently wait...

Well, contradictions and crosscurrents defy generalisation.

And if there’s one positive thing about driving in KL, blame it on the traffic jam (genuine or not) for any late arrivals.

What say you...

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