ARREST SOCIAL ILL BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE

THE Mat Rempit menace is a social disease. It is so rampant that filmmakers make movies about these people. Some leaders even promoted this delinquent behaviour by building race tracks for them.

The government must be advised that the usual Malaysian malaise towards this has not worked and will not work in the future.

Mat Rempit used to occupy byways to cause havoc and mayhem in kampung, but now they have graduated to highways.

Just before the Hari Raya Aidilfitri holidays, I saw a group of them racing in the fast lane on the North-South Expressway. They were committing transgressions, oblivious to the danger they were causing to themselves and other road users.

I am sure the police are aware of this, but they have either given up or are not up to it.

Perhaps the new government can give birth to a “New Malaysia” by getting rid of these young miscreants.

There are three approaches that need to be taken. Mat Rempit are a threat to themselves, to others and the nation. Therefore, solutions to the Mat Rempit problem need to take this threepronged approach.

Firstly, the Mat Rempit are a danger to themselves. One must find out why this is so. The theory is that these miscreants come from broken homes. If so, the government needs to arrest the problems that lead to broken homes.

The Mat Rempit menace needs to be tackled at the source and at an early stage. Otherwise, it will spiral into a crisis. Today, children as young as 10 display delinquent behaviour in public.

Peer pressure, too, is a critical factor. Teenagers and young adults are susceptible to peer influence in their attitude and action.

A 2006 research by the police showed that most of the Mat and Minah Rempit were aged between 16 and 25. First, they watch; then, they follow; and finally, they teach this delinquent behaviour to others. This vicious cycle must be broken if we are serious about putting an end to the menace.

Mat Rempit are not just a problem in the cities, they are a menace to kampung folk too. Many cases of Mat Rempit riding into crowds had been reported over the years.

To an extent, the Mat Rempit problem continues to exist because they are allowed to gather in large numbers.

Some form of anti-social behaviour law or amendment to illegal assembly law is needed.

Mat Rempit are a huge liability to Malaysia in terms of cost and loss of resources. There are no data on the injuries, losses or deaths caused by Mat Rempit. However, one can assume that it costs society dearly.

A “New Malaysia” is possible with institutional changes. If we truly want to see a new Malaysia, we need to solve the Mat Rempit problem soon.