17 mil motorbike riders but do Anwar & Pakatan bother? In M'sia safety gear RM500 but in India only RM250

Written by J. D. Lovrenciear 

KUALA LUMPUR (politicsnowmy.blogspot.com) - Time for government to seriously look into safety riding gears

This video (below) gives you a glaring truth about safety standards made affordable in India. 

For as low as RM250 bikers can purchase safety riding jackets that not only meet high safety standards but even come with five year warranties. 

The same can be said of other gears like safety riding boots, helmets and gloves.

Unfortunately despite having almost 17 million registered motorbikes (2023 statistics) in Malaysia with a given conservative estimate of seven million bikes actively plying our roads, most motorists cannot afford safety jackets and related safety riding gears let alone wear quality, undamaged helmets. 

In Malaysia a reasonable branded, reliable jacket can cost no less than RM4,000 while cheap (or seemingly 'affordable') jackets (like those coming in from Pakistan or Bangladesh) and costing around RM400-500 have questionable safety ratings. 

It is not uncommon to spot our bikers wearing slippers with just a sports jumper loosely pulled over the hands. 

Gloves is mostly out of the question as these can cost a daily biker RM100 to RM600 per pair. 

Even our 'cheap sale' Made in Malaysia helmets do not give any comfort other than showcase compliance with traffic rules. 

If the accident and death statistics on roads involving motorbikes are reviewed, one wonders why the Malaysian governments of past and current times have been cold on motorbike safety. 

In 2023 alone, an average of 12 motorcyclists died everyday on our roads, accounting for approximately 75 per cent of all road crashes. Based on the Federal Traffic Enforcement and Investigation Department statistics, Malaysia recorded 600,000 motorcycle crashes for year 2023 translating to an average of 1,644 cases daily ( https://www.iseas.edu.sg ). 

While progressing nations are making safety riding gears affordable, of high standards and promoting the culture of gearing up right on the bike, we in Malaysia continue to play double fiddle for road safety. 

Let truth prevail. 

One, most of the imported riding gears are not affordable for a vast segment of the biker community. 

Two, our own local products cannot match in quality, design and cost like those manufactured in India for example (as observed from the attached video). 

Three, despite science proving that deaths can be avoided and injuries minimised by wearing reliable and proven complete motorbike gears, Malaysians are left without choice but blame it on God. 

Hopefully our road safety agencies will pressure the Madani government to do something. 

Hopefully business licensing authorities and customs will work together to plug loopholes that continue to let bussinesses to bring in cheap, unqualified, make believe riding gears and selling them off at marked up prices, taking advantage of the high priced quality branded gears. 

And the government must also explore ways and means to not profit from quality imported riding gears with tax that obviously only add to the high cost of these jackets, gloves, boots and helmets. 

To create and sustain a culture of road safety among motorists we need a government will. 

And road safety should never be made into a lucrative, profiteering venture. 

Written by J. D. Lovrenciear 

https://politicsnowmy.blogspot.com/