Potholes are such a norm in Malaysia. The number of unfixed potholes that have been causing damage to road users has been causing frustration and inconvenience for road users across the country.
3 years ago, a local man suffered injuries when his motorcycle hit a pothole in Taman Kota Masai, Johor. The Johor Bahru Sessions Court had yesterday (28th April) granted him RM721,000 in damages.
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“Legal action was taken against the maintenance company”
According to New Straits Times, at the time of the incident, the victim, Razali @ Mohd Leey bin Subeh was riding his motorcycle from Taman Cendana to Taman Kota Masai at 10pm when he hit a pothole on the road, causing him to fall and sustain severe injuries such as head injury, facial injuries, fracture to the humerus, ribs, brachial plexus and etc.
A lawsuit was filed against the company responsible for maintaining the road hired by the state government.
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The company failed to fulfill their duty of maintaining the road
The court found in favour of the 49-year-old man, saying he proved his case on the balance of probabilities and that the said company was responsible for the said accident.
The court also agreed that it made sense for Razali not to have seen the pothole because the area had insufficient lighting.
“I believe that the company didn’t do their job of maintaining the road, therefore they’re responsible for the Razali’s claim under Section 7(3) of the Government Proceedings Act (GPA),” said Sessions Judge Sazlina Safie
The company in turn argued that the pothole in question was not under its responsibility because the location of the incident was under the territory of another utility company along with subcontractors appointed to maintain it, according to Sinar Harian.
Potholes may seem harmless, but the damage they can cause tells a different story altogether. Be safe out there, everyone!
