There are many laws in Malaysia that are not well known to many – for instance riding an elephant down the street could land you a maximum fine of RM50; or receiving oral sex may be penalized under Section 377A of the Penal Code which will result in imprisonment for a maximum of 20 year and whipping according to Ask Legal.
Though most of these laws sound bizarre, some of them are actually based on sound principals.
Taking to Twitter, @yimsterz called out a local radio station which posted a poll wanting to know how many drive their car barefooted, calling it, illegal and a danger to the driver and other road users.
Siapa geng drive kereta kaki ayam ? ? Hehe #SharERA pic.twitter.com/UW3rjNhf7q
— ERA (@ERAdotje) January 4, 2019
The original tweet which wrote, “Who out there drives barefooted? Hehe”, was met with a reply from @yimsterz tweet that wrote, “Did you know? It’s illegal to drive barefoot even in Malaysia.”
“It’s also not safe to do so as your foot might slip off the pedals easily without much traction.”
Source: Twitter
Is driving without proper footwear really an offence in Malaysia?
According to driving-school.com.my, it’s not explicitly stated that wearing slippers is a punishable offence despite its obvious dangers such as slippers getting caught between the pedals among others.
However the same could not be said for road users who are commercial drivers.
Back in 2015, Sarawak State Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Department Chief Deputy Superintendent Alexson Naga Chabu defended the state’s action to penalize a lorry driver for not wearing proper attire – i.e. wearing slippers.
The 30-year-old driver was penalized under the Road Transport Act carrying a compound of RM150 for not adhering to the dress code while handling a heavy vehicle.
Netizens responding to @yimsterz tweet was in support of the ‘public service announcement’.
One suggested that the suggestion to drive without proper footwear may not be the right message that should be relayed to the public.
Source: Twitter
He wrote, “I also hear that it’s not recommended to wear flip-flops, slippers or high-heeled shoes while driving.”
“It’s so funny that this was tweeted by an account followed by hundreds of thousands of people.”
Source: Twitter
Another writes, “I have a pair of slip-ons that I exclusively use for driving. I keep them in my car and before I go out of the car I’d change to my daily heels.”
Despite no particular law put in place making proper footwear a must for those driving personal vehicles, it’s always a must to take extra precaution when driving.
Also read: Can Malaysians ‘Kena Saman’ For Driving While Wearing Slippers?
