Safety In Numbers?

Why is it that if you are among a group of people, you feel very brave and can intimidate other people?

About 3:30pm 2 September 2005, I was slowing my car down at a busy road when a Kancil back-rammed into my car.

Both drivers came out, with the passengers in tow. In my car, my mother came out while my aunt stayed in the car. In the other car, the passenger was a pregnant lady.

I asked her how she wanted to settle the issue. She said she would pay me RM50.00. I double-checked my car and found out that besides the dent in the front bumper and a loosed bracket, the signal part on the right was also loosed.

I told the lady I didn’t know how much the repair would cost. I made a call and found out a new front bumper costs RM150 or so. I asked for RM100.00.

By now, maybe about five “busy-body” had joined the other “camp” while I was alone with my mother and aunt. The lady changed her tune and became aggressive and to me, unreasonable.

They bumped into my car; but didn’t want to pay and threatened to report to the police. DUH?

And out of nowhere, a partially toothless man came and said that it’s not worth RM100.00 since it was minor. I told him that it was an estimate. He was very intimidating and said that he’d check with the police. After making a call, he told me that a Sgt Lim is waiting for my car at the Traffic Station.

HELLO??? What about the car which rammed into my car? “Oh, awak minta duit dulu, lepas tu, police nak cakap dengan you saja.”

ELLLO – you think my middle name is “stupid” ke? I told him politely but firmly that the lady offered to pay first.

The pregnant lady looked quite frightened by the turn of events. She told me that he is friend of her brother; who was on the way to the scene.

He continued to be very aggressive and shouted nonsense. I was thinking – bloody hell – if you continue to be like this, I was going to make a report on him!

Luckily, the lady’s brother (Razali) came and said that if I want to make a police report, both parties had to pay RM300.00 and even the police won’t demand that the injured party be paid. He became quite threatening as well and went on and on and on about how unreasonable I was to ask for money.

I told him that I was not interested in any money but in fixing the damage.

Eventually, he said that we’d go to his friend’s workshop to fix the bumper. It was done within 20 minutes.

My parting shot to Razali was that there was no need to be so aggressive and threatening when things could be settled amicably. I didn’t ask for money but his sister offered to pay me first. Since the bracket was fixed, I don’t even want any money.

And to the pregnant lady? I told her that it’s not nice to be rude and unreasonable especially when one is pregnant.

I don’t need strength in numbers but in my belief that I was in the right. If they had not been so threatening and aggressive but apologetic and contrite, I’d would have accepted the RM50.00 and asked a friend to fix the damages for free! HA HA HA!