MAY 4 — Over the weekend, the public imagination was gripped by a tragic accident that took the lives of a couple and their infant daughter, and deprived two young girls of a loving family.

Scorn was poured on the drivers of the six Perodua Myvi cars purportedly involved in an illegal race that led to the fatal accident, especially after it was reported that they fled the scene.

What spurred the social media debate further was when an owners club of the said car model went and defended the six drivers, claiming that they did not engage in any illegal race that night.

Of course, that was before a surveillance video surfaced online showing what is believed to be the six speeding Myvis and the Mitsubishi Pajero moments before the crash.

What followed was a denial by the club that the six drivers were their members.

But dwelling on this is missing the point.

Sure, the club appeared to be callous and painfully misinformed when making its statements, but the core issue here is this - bad drivers.

It really doesn’t matter what damn car you drive.

If you drive like a complete moron, you are very likely going to end up anywhere between the police station and the morgue.

And it’s not just the six “racers”, who probably couldn’t wait to save enough money so they could take their cars out for a couple of laps at the Sepang International Circuit without having to trouble the cops or oncoming traffic.

It’s people who’ve had one pint too many and think that the blurry truck-looking thing in front of their car will magically disappear as they floor the accelerator.

Or people who floor the accelerator because they can’t wait to get one pint too many.

There are those who simply cut in front of a car that’s moving at speed because they almost missed the turn-off and don’t want to suffer the inconvenience of having to take a U-turn one or two kilometres away.

And let’s not forget the Professor X wannabes, who assume that their intent will be transmitted telepathically to other road users — an attempt that could potentially land them in the same physical state as the good professor.

When it comes to driving properly, it appears to be weighed down by societal apathy.

To be licensed, the Road Transport Department requires that you get 42 out of 50 questions on the written test correct, and score a minimum of 16 out of 20 points for the practical assessment.

A reasonably high threshold to get a license. So why are we generally such lousy drivers?

A lot of people will give a variety of reasons — no training in defensive driving, a poor system that emphasises on fulfilling required hours instead of actual learning, or alleged kopi-O licenses which involve extra money surreptitiously changing hands, being some examples.

I posit that the problem starts way before the individual is old enough to attend driving school.

In an environment where common sense is dulled by the pursuit of the first letter of the alphabet, it’s a wonder how they would be able to manage a situation as dynamic as a busy highway.

And bad habits of more experienced drivers will set the tone for the newbies, who in turn will set the tone for whoever comes after them.

There is a reason why every single car anywhere in the world has side and rear-view mirrors, hazard lights AND signal lights.

If you can’t see why those things are important, you should sell your car and start taking the bus.

Oh wait. Those things tend to crash a lot too in this country.

Haih. Just can’t win.

* This is the personal opinion of the columnist.