EDITORIAL: SUBANG JAYA HAS DONE IT AGAIN HOSTING THE BIGGEST CHARITY DURIAN FEST IN TOWN

YES! Subang Jaya has done it over and over again; and has just tucked in its 12^th JOM DURIAN event which is dubbed as the biggest eat-all-you-can durian fest in the country.

More than 1,500 people showed up for the two-day event to support the work of the Children’s Wish Society of Malaysia, a Subang Jaya born national charity that goes out across the country to fulfill wishes of terminally ill children with the funds raised.

Surely it is not the number of people who showed up that is important but it is the diversity of people who did that matters the most. People from all walks of life spared some time and funds to support this event, mostly Subang Jaya residents but certainly from other areas as well. I spent some time during the launch to share a bit about the charity and what it has achieved since its inception and again I shared a bit more with the public who showed up for the fest itself. I could see I intrigued their curiosity about this low profile charity and made them want to know more.

Right after their session, many of these people came up to me to say Thank You. Some even asked more questions while reinforcing their commitment to come again next year for Jom Durian 13. It humbled me to see so many people coming over to spend their afternoon with us raising funds for a cause that I have spent 12 years with. Even more humbling it was to have Deputy Minister of Women, Family and Community Development Hannah Yeoh, Subang MP Wong Chen, ADUN Subang Jaya Michelle Ng and Kuala Lumpur Mayor Dato Nor Hisham Ahmad Dahlan take time off their busy schedule to be with us to Celebrate Life.

August is here and the momentum is building as we prepare to celebrate our National Day. Already, some programmes are popping up on our radar screen. It is definitely going to be an exciting month ahead.

Needless to say, this is the time of year when everything starts to peak once again. It is the time when planning gets placed into action and this is where things get exciting.

This month, we featured road safety as our main story. While we look at the facts before us on the safety aspects of our roads (and await the safety audit by the authorities), I would like to bring up something that we seldom point our finger at – human recklessness. Is there a possibility that at times, road accidents are not caused by the poor engineering and design of the roads; and perhaps is caused by our own impatience and recklessness while we are on the roads?

A mild-mannered man or woman can turn into a daredevil once they sit behind the wheel. Just less than a week after the fatal accident in July, I was driving along Persiaran Tujuan from USJ13 towards the Federal Highway. By the time I had reached the junction near SMK USJ12, I had noticed a vehicle behind me driving impatiently. There was an old man and woman in the car driving a small car but he was speeding. Right after the junction as we headed towards the stretch along USJ4, this vehicle swerved to the left behind me; sped passed me and without any warning steered right into my path. Instinctively I stepped on the brakes and honked him. But he just ignored me and went zig-zagging between cars right up to the USJ2 traffic light along the same road. I caught up with him then and had a good look at the man before he once again tried to zig-zag his way from USJ3/1 over the Kesas Highway bridge towards the Federal Highway.

This episode taught me one thing. We can build the safest roads but if we have morons like this driving on our roads, it will make no difference. We use to blame recklessness and impatience on young drivers but this episode taught me another lesson – no one is any different irrespective of their age.

On this note, I would like to seek our readers’ opinion on what they think about this matter. Are our roads safe enough or is it the motorist who is making the roads dangerous. Think about it and share your thoughts with us. Write us at editor@sjecho.com.my.

The school break is here and without a doubt many will be taking the opportunity to go on a well-deserved holiday. This is the once-in-a-blue moon reprieve for those of us who will be staying back to take a break without travelling too far.

Here’s wishing you a good month ahead and Selamat Menyambut Hari Merdeka!