COMMENT Two days ago, a tragic accident happened where a car driven by an octogenarian plunged into a 12m-deep sewerage pit right in front of the Sin Chew office.

I should say, “Darn it! Such an accident should never have happened at all right at our doorstep. But what an accident it could have been, if the driver and his passenger had died. Or it could have been worse if one of our children happened to walk right into it.”

Less a stone’s throw away is Puay Chai School. Lisa De Inn is where foreign tourists come and stay. And this is happening right in front of their eyes. What a story to tell to their families when they return home.

Can we allow such a work culture to continue where contractors get away with a small fine? Should we allow them to continue with their act of negligence, blaming it on the few foreign workers whom I was told are the only ones left doing the job on-site?

What the heck is the main contractor for, if it does not do everything within its power to ensure that such things did not happen? It is outrageous! It is unthinkable!

Someone very close to our hearts

Imagine the trauma. Within a split-second, the car took a nosedive 12m down the pit after hitting some plastic barriers.

This could have happened to any of us who use the road daily. And, the fact that it happened to 86-year-old Yong Chee Seng, our beloved former school principal, is enough to make our blood boil for many of us. Old boys on social chat groups have expressed their concern over the accident, and most of us are angry with the lackadaisical attitude of the main contractor on the job. (Photo courtesy of Class of 1981 Form V)

In fact, it is not only the former principal of Methodist Boys Secondary School Kuala Lumpur (1979-1985) who is currently traumatised, I am traumatised myself!

I had just passed by the site unknowingly late last night. My wife and child had also driven past that same location last night. Unsuspectingly, that was the site where the tragic accident had happened.

God is gracious

Over the phone this morning, Yong said he was grateful that he survived the accident. The maid, still having a swollen eye, is still in hospital but would be discharged anytime this afternoon.

He did not want to talk about the accident any more but said: “We could have died in there.” That is how traumatic that accident was to him. I can only say that God was gracious to both driver and passenger.

For all that I know of our principal, he has always been a very careful driver. Although some eyewitnesses claimed that Yong was speeding, such claims do not hold water.

Back in 1980, I came back from the Fraser’s Hill with Yong in his car. What still impresses me today is how careful he was as a driver. How could he at 86 years old still be speeding like some young people?

I must say that Yong, a well-loved principal in the like of David Boler to Bukit Bintang Boys and Elena Cooke to Bukit Bintang Girls, is also well-known in the Christian community as a faithful leader especially in the Methodist education sector.

His loss would definitely be a great loss to this nation. And of all things, it was a sewerage pit that his car had fallen into. How tragic that accident would have been. We want to know who is responsible. If need be, the manager in charge of the project should be sacked.

Stop-work order must be extended

Malaysia is supposed to be a developed nation by 2020. And here we are in 2016, still scratching our heads why major contractors appointed to work on the sewerage system could be so negligent.

The client in this case should immediately terminate the contractors for the failure to ensure public safety and safety at workplace for the few foreign workers on the job. Both the Road Safety Department and the Department of Occupational Safety should also step in to see what they can do to step up safety.

It is good that the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) has slapped a stop-work order, but this stop-work order has to be extended beyond three months to ensure that the company learns the lesson by hard. The mayor should press charges against the main contractor for its failure to ensure public safety.

There is nothing much that the authority can do except to punish the culprits, but the onus is always on the companies doing the job. They should have safety officers to look at such important projects. I want to know whether the company has taken responsibility for the safety of the public.

Firstly, the chief executive officer of the main contractor has not even publicly apologised to Yong and his maid. He or she should also apologise to all Malaysians for such a mishap that should never have happened if more care had been put into public safety. What backyard contractor is this?

Secondly, we have not heard whether there is even an offer to compensate Yong and his maid for the damage and trauma that they experienced. Knowing my principal, a very humble man indeed, he would not accept the compensation, but at least, his car should be replaced.

He can then opt to give the compensation money to some charitable fund, which is likely to be the education fund of MBSSKL.

This is how devoted a man he was to the education of young people in this country regardless of race or religion. We do not see many of these teachers around, and preserve their legacy we must.

STEPHEN NG is an ordinary citizen with an avid interest in following political developments in the country since 2008.