SEPUTEH MP Teresa Kok has questioned why Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong had not offered “the humane thing” to the LRT crash victims three years ago when he was the transport minister.
According to Kok, it was ironic that Wee was now urging the government to settle the lawsuit brought by a victim of the collision out of court.
“Has he forgotten that he was the transport minister at the time of the accident? Is Wee himself saying that he is not humane?” she asked.
“Why did Wee not use his ministerial position, which would have been most effective, in offering to do the ‘most humane thing’, when he had the full authority and opportunity?
“His action now is akin to wanting to lock the stable door after the horses have bolted.”
Wee was still serving as transport minister when the LRT crash occurred in 2021. His tenure ended in October 2022, when Parliament was dissolved to make way for the 15th general election.
In a Facebook post on Wednesday (May 15), Wee said the trial would come at a significant cost to the government and would take up the time of personnel at the Attorney-General’s Chambers and the courts.
He said the victim had already been suffering for three years and that the government should not make her suffer further by having to wait and incur another four years of legal bills while waiting for the case to start in 2028.
The suit, filed by Florence Lee in December last year, named the LRT system’s owner, Prasarana Malaysia Bhd, and operator, Rapid Rail Sdn Bhd, as defendants.
Lee said the crash was due to the defendants’ negligence and breaches of statutory duty.
Lee, 57, is seeking to recover RM113,524.08 in special damages, including RM84,372.58 in medical, physiotherapy and rehabilitation expenses, as well as general, aggravated and exemplary damages as assessed by the court.
She claimed to have been “thrown to the ground” by the impact of the crash, leaving her with a broken left femur, a punctured thigh wound and cuts to her left eyelid.
She said she was subjected to a prolonged recovery process which required multiple surgeries and resulted in a shortening of her left leg, affecting her gait.
According to Lee, the collision, which took place along the Kelana Jaya line on May 24, 2021, also resulted in “physical and mental injuries” including “nervous shock, mental depression, pain and suffering, and loss of amenities”, from which she has been “unable to fully recover”. – May 16, 2024
Main pic credit: The Borneo Post
