Penang Island City Council (MBPP) has endured the wrath of the internet after a woman, who had taken her wheelchair-bound mother to the bank, had her car clamped by parking officials, and the entire thing made it onto video that went viral.
While Ooi Chee Lin’s mother was clearly of limited mobility, suffering from Parkinson’s disease, according to her doctor’s report, the vehicle she used to transport her did not have the official disabled persons (OKU) sticker on her dashboard, nor did she have a card from the State Welfare Department.
Seeing the car in the blue disabled parking bay without tags, two MBPP officers then clamped the car.
Ooi has taken her complaint straight to Penang’s mayor, Datuk Maimunah Mohd Sharif, where in front of a group of journalists, she outlined the situation and asked the mayor the question that burns inside our minds day in and out: Whatever happened to common sense?
Ooi’s issue stems from the fact that shortly after the clamp, she emerged from the bank with her wheelchair-bound mother. Seeing this, officers refused to remove the clamp and demanded that she pay the fine first.
No amount of pleading and explanation could sway the officers. A bank employee who witnessed the situation then came outside to pay the fine for Ooi.
While the mayor agreed that the officers should have unclamped the car when they saw Ooi’s frail mother, officers are not technically allowed to release the clamps without payment or approval from a superior.
MBPP is now reviewing current guidelines.
Meanwhile, we’ll all continue to wonder whatever happened to our dear friend, common sense.
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