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13-year-old boy caught driving, with dad present in the car, tells JPJ he had ‘no choice’ as father was unwell

13-year-old boy caught driving, with dad present in the car, tells JPJ he had ‘no choice’ as father was unwell

Unlicensed, underage driving, which is more prevalent than you think, is usually the result of vehicles being taken out on joyrides without the knowledge of the vehicle owner, and sometimes there is even consent from the latter, but what if there’s even more, such as the presence of a guardian in the vehicle itself?

Such a case unfolded in Kedah last week, when a 13-year-old boy was caught driving a car – with his father seated in the passenger seat of the vehicle – during a road transport department (JPJ) enforcement operation in Kulim, as the Malay Mail reports.

According to Kedah JPJ director Stien Van Lutam, the boy was driving a Perodua Kancil when he was pulled over at about 12.45 pm on March 5 along Jalan Sungai Seluang during an operation conducted by the Sungai Petani JPJ branch. Checks found the boy did not possess a valid driving licence as he had yet to reach the legal age to obtain one, an offence under Section 39(1) of the Road Transport Act 1987.

13-year-old boy caught driving, with dad present in the car, tells JPJ he had ‘no choice’ as father was unwell

The lad’s response to enforcement officers about the matter was that he had ‘no choice’ but to drive because his father was unwell and needed to run an errand. He was issued a summons for underage driving, while his father was likewise fined by JPJ. Checks showed the vehicle, which was not seized, had a valid road tax.

While nothing untoward came about in this particular instance, allowing underage individuals to get behind the wheel of a vehicle can have dire – and fatal – consequences. Last week, The Star reported that a woman who allowed her 17-year-old son to drive her car, which was later involved in an accident that claimed three lives, was fined RM1,500 by the magistrate’s court in Seremban.

In the traffic incident, the accused’s son had run a red light and then crashed into two motorcycles, which resulted in three teenagers, aged 15, 16 and 17, being killed in the mishap. The boy initially claimed trial when first charged with reckless driving on April 22 last year, but changed his plea to guilty in December, and is due for sentencing in May, pending a social report from the welfare department.

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Anthony Lim

Anthony Lim believes that nothing is better than a good smoke and a car with character, with good handling aspects being top of the prize heap. Having spent more than a decade and a half with an English tabloid daily never being able to grasp the meaning of brevity or being succinct, he wags his tail furiously at the idea of waffling - in greater detail - about cars and all their intrinsic peculiarities here.

 

Comments

  • Dah Menang Semua on Mar 09, 2026 at 8:06 pm

    Bapa lapar giler
    Kena tolongkan

    Thumb up 2 Thumb down 0
  • Sick & Tired on Mar 09, 2026 at 10:54 pm

    Fire Loke and all underage driving will be solved.

    Thumb up 0 Thumb down 29
    • do u need medical assistance? on Mar 10, 2026 at 7:37 pm

      You’re too sick & too tired to remember that long before he became the transport minister, it is already against the law for any person under 16 years of age to drive a motor vehicle on public roads. And to this day, JPJ is still enforcing against such an offence, as already evident with this case in Kulim, Kedah.

      Thumb up 15 Thumb down 0
  • Santok Singh on Mar 09, 2026 at 11:09 pm

    it’s the typical b40 culture of a very specific race (this is statistics, not racism). where they think behaving like chimpanzees equals cool and points. But to the rest of the world, they are simply society’s trash

    Thumb up 4 Thumb down 1
  • Najib on Mar 09, 2026 at 11:12 pm

    Why didnt say need to help dad deliver tofu?

    Thumb up 2 Thumb down 0
  • pqrst on Mar 10, 2026 at 6:50 am

    takpe lah, ayah tu fine 1500 dah cukup

    Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
  • Wonderwhy on Mar 10, 2026 at 8:58 am

    This is not a reason or excuse! does it means that i am poor, i should go and rob. i am horny and i gonna go rape?!

    Thumb up 6 Thumb down 0
  • Laugh on Mar 10, 2026 at 9:11 am

    The father must have been an Initial D fan. Wanting to start his son off early to run errands while providing the necessary training as foundation for a future professional driver.

    Must be low on budget though, a kancil… lol…
    Wait a minute… could it be the legendary downhill kancil with a swapped 1.5cc myvi engine?

    Now that’s some interesting material for the coming Malaysia very own Initial D anime series.
    Can also market it as “Based on True Story”.

    ROFL….

    Thumb up 2 Thumb down 0
    • uesbrain laugh on Mar 10, 2026 at 4:55 pm

      kancil cannot swap with 1.5 myvi engine as thats different engine mounting. usually they use the 3-cylinder turbo engine taken from daihatsu halfcut

      Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Aiyoh like dat oso can ah

    Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
 

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