MCA Youth secretary-general Leong Kim Soon has accused Transport Minister Anthony Loke of being reckless by cancelling all unpaid speeding tickets issued through the Automated Enforcement System (AES).

He said traffic offenders should be penalised and made to shoulder responsibility for their actions, and that cancelling the unpaid fines would only encourage them to break the law.

“Sadly, the Pakatan Harapan government and law enforcement authorities are not facing real problems at hand, nor deploying an effective method to lower accident rates.

“Instead, they have displayed an ‘inclusive’ attitude towards traffic offenders.

“In view of this, the transport minister should apologise making a foolish and wrong decision,” he said in a statement today.

On Friday, Loke announced that 3.1 million unpaid summons for motorists caught speeding by the AES system would be forgiven, worth a total of RM435 million.

However, the minister said that this would be a one-off gesture, and that enforcement will be tightened after Sept 1.

He also stressed that there would be no refunds for the 18 percent of offenders who had already paid their summons since the system was implemented in 2012.

In his statement, Leong said the move is clearly populist, only serving to win the hearts of the public, and will lead to more accidents as speeding laws lose their deterrent effect.

“If laws enacted are not implemented to penalise offenders, then what should the law do?

“Speeding not only endangers one’s own safety but also endangers the lives of others. As some motorists are reckless and prone to speeding, Loke’s announcement will lead to higher accident rates in Malaysia.

“Thus, having speed limits or fines are a necessary deterrent. What purpose therefore does Loke’s decision serve by cancelling all fines?” he said.

Leong also questioned whether the announcement amounts to announcing an “anarchy holiday” until Sept 1, where speeding motorists will not face any legal repercussions.