PUBLISHED ONDecember 14, 2023 4:25 AMByClaudia TanA bus ride from Singapore to Johor Bahru went awry for one Malaysian man - all because he confronted the bus driver.
The man, who identified himself as a Malaysian working in Singapore, made an anonymous complaint in a Facebook group on Tuesday (Dec 12).
He boarded a bus from Singapore with his girlfriend as well as her elder sister who was carrying her four-month-old baby at about 9am on Dec 9.
As there was a traffic jam at the checkpoint, the man said that the bus driver opened the doors to allow some passengers to alight before they reached the drop-off point.
The bus driver, however, suddenly stepped on the accelerator when the bus in front of him started moving.
"He didn't notice that some passengers were still getting off the bus... my girlfriend and her sister were carrying a stroller and a four-month-old baby.
"Fortunately, they reacted in time and nothing happened to them," the passenger wrote.
When the man tried to tell the bus driver to be more cautious, the latter allegedly yelled at him.
"I didn't want to argue with him, so I just took a photo of him and his bus licence plate number. When he realised I took a photo, he rushed out of the driver's seat and tried to grab my phone."
The man also said that the bus driver tried to push him and cursed at him.
The kerfuffle between the two men caught the attention of two immigration officers, who approached them.
The passenger claimed that one of the officers asked if he was Singaporean and Malaysian, while the other officer calmly listened to his explanation of what had happened.
When the officers heard that the man was Malaysian, one of them allegedly told him in Malay: "Do you want to go into Malaysia? If you want to enter, delete the video. If not, I will bring this matter to my superiors and ban your passport."
Left with little choice, the man said he handed his mobile phone over to the officer, who deleted the photos of the bus driver. However, he added that he managed to save a copy of the photos.
"After this incident, I am disappointed in Malaysian officials. The bus driver was clearly the one at fault here, but he could get away with yelling and cussing at me."
"They didn't even ask the bus driver why he got aggressive, if he didn't do anything wrong, why was he afraid when I took a photo of him?"
Responding to 8world's queries, the Immigration Department of Malaysia said they did not receive any reports regarding the incident.
Lim Chern Chuen, Executive Director of Handal Indah Group of Companies, which owns Causeway Link, confirmed with 8world that the bus driver involved is an employee of their company.
"We are deeply sorry to hear of this incident. We are in contact with the driver involved and will take the necessary disciplinary action against him," said Lim.
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claudiatan@asiaone.com
