Forced to pay bribes to JB cops not once, but twice, for traffic trouble
STOMPer A is appalled with the traffic law in Malaysia as she had topay 'settlements' to get out of traffic trouble instead of getting a traffic ticket as how it is supposed to be.
In an email, the STOMPer said:
"My boyfriend and I were stopped by two Malaysian traffic police officers when we were exiting the road from the money changer. Apparently, the road that we frequently used was not an exit to the main road. Thus, the officers asked for our driving license or ID. As we do not have the habit of bringing our documents except our passports into JB for fear of losing them, we handed over our passport.
"However, the officers insisted that we produce our licenses even after our reasoning. The officer then said that we had to follow them back to the traffic police headquarters where we will be locked up and charged in court the following day. We then tried to reason with them that a friend could bring our driving license but officer repeatedly said he had to lock my boyfriend up. But what I noticed was that the Singapore registered car before us were let off. Thus, again we pleaded with the officer. Finally, we were left with no choice but offer him a 'settlement'. Initially we have him RM50 but the officer jeered at us and insisted we get back to our car to follow him. We continued our plea and offered him RM100 instead. But the officer simply said that it depends on how much the court summon is. We took it as a hint and asked him how much was the summon and if we could 'settle' the matter. In a haughty tone, the officer replied, 'I don't know, you ask the judge lah. Maybe it's RM2,000 or RM3,000.
"After a while, we decided to give what ever cash we had with us, which was about RM250 and $70. We were let off and told to head back to the Causeway. Later during the night however, we experienced a similar incident at the supper place we frequent. But this time, the 'settlement' was much quicker with RM100.
"The issue here was not about the amount we had to spend to prevent ourselves from being locked-up. But the lack of system or traffic law. We are more than willing to comply and pay any tickets issued to us through proper means instead of having to pay a 'settlement'. Extortion which in my opinion is the first incident, is also a big issue which needs immediate attention. In addition, shouldn't both countries registered cars be given similar treatment if it was to maintain order? Coincidentally (or not), all cars that were stopped before and after us were Singapore registered cars, even though there were both exiting from the same area.
"Although I understand these issues could cause some Malaysian officers to feel that they have been wrongfully accused because of minority officers. I would appreciate investigations and actions from the Malaysian Police Force in this area and some form of proper explanation to appease the feelings of injustice stirred in those of us who have met with these unacceptable incidents.
STOMPer A is appalled with the traffic law in Malaysia as she had topay 'settlements' to get out of traffic trouble instead of getting a traffic ticket as how it is supposed to be.
In an email, the STOMPer said:
"My boyfriend and I were stopped by two Malaysian traffic police officers when we were exiting the road from the money changer. Apparently, the road that we frequently used was not an exit to the main road. Thus, the officers asked for our driving license or ID. As we do not have the habit of bringing our documents except our passports into JB for fear of losing them, we handed over our passport.
"However, the officers insisted that we produce our licenses even after our reasoning. The officer then said that we had to follow them back to the traffic police headquarters where we will be locked up and charged in court the following day. We then tried to reason with them that a friend could bring our driving license but officer repeatedly said he had to lock my boyfriend up. But what I noticed was that the Singapore registered car before us were let off. Thus, again we pleaded with the officer. Finally, we were left with no choice but offer him a 'settlement'. Initially we have him RM50 but the officer jeered at us and insisted we get back to our car to follow him. We continued our plea and offered him RM100 instead. But the officer simply said that it depends on how much the court summon is. We took it as a hint and asked him how much was the summon and if we could 'settle' the matter. In a haughty tone, the officer replied, 'I don't know, you ask the judge lah. Maybe it's RM2,000 or RM3,000.
"After a while, we decided to give what ever cash we had with us, which was about RM250 and $70. We were let off and told to head back to the Causeway. Later during the night however, we experienced a similar incident at the supper place we frequent. But this time, the 'settlement' was much quicker with RM100.
"The issue here was not about the amount we had to spend to prevent ourselves from being locked-up. But the lack of system or traffic law. We are more than willing to comply and pay any tickets issued to us through proper means instead of having to pay a 'settlement'. Extortion which in my opinion is the first incident, is also a big issue which needs immediate attention. In addition, shouldn't both countries registered cars be given similar treatment if it was to maintain order? Coincidentally (or not), all cars that were stopped before and after us were Singapore registered cars, even though there were both exiting from the same area.
"Although I understand these issues could cause some Malaysian officers to feel that they have been wrongfully accused because of minority officers. I would appreciate investigations and actions from the Malaysian Police Force in this area and some form of proper explanation to appease the feelings of injustice stirred in those of us who have met with these unacceptable incidents.
