Residents have not forgotten the case of Faisal Otaibi better known as ‘Abu Kab' – the guy with the baseball cap – the disgraced naval officer found guilty of killing three people, two of them minors, in a stunt-driving accident five years ago. Otaibi was sentenced to 3,000 lashes, 20 years in prison and a lifetime ban on driving after his car spun out of control while performing a “drifting” stunt. Car stunts are a favorite hobby for the Saudi youth. And such stunts have resulted in a number of deaths and injuries. This dangerous hobby, it seems, is no longer restricted to the Saudis. Expat youths are now trying to emulate the Saudis. Recently one such stunt resulted in the death of two expat students in Jeddah. On the morning of May 14, a Friday, five expat youths got together to first have a breakfast in a restaurant in Aziziya District and then engaged in a car race on a deserted holiday street. They divided themselves into two groups. Three of them – Sarim (Pakistani), Taha and Sufiyan (both Indians), got in a GMC, and Asiful Haque (Pakistani) and Mahmood Ali Khan (Indian) in another car. During the car race, the GMC hit the other car, resulting in the death of Asiful and Mahmood. According to eyewitnesses, the boys were driving at 160-180 mph speed. The eyewitnesses saw the car crash into an electricity pole and a tree. A few minutes after the crash, the car burst into a ball of fire, burning beyond recognition the two boys who were injured and trapped in the car. After a weeklong silence, Sarim, disclosed to the victims' parents that he was driving the GMC, which hit the car being driven by Asif. The more disturbing part of the whole incident is the behavior of the parents. It took them a week to gather courage to come before the victims' parents to confess their sons' culpability in the incident. “Parents of the guilty boys tried to hide the truth while they continued visiting us in condolence meetings,” said Syed Mohammad Imteyazul Haque, who hails from Karachi and works as quality control engineer in a private company in Jeddah. His youngest son, Asif, died in the accident. However, Haque himself fell short of words when asked as how much he considered himself responsible for this tragic incident. He said that he was unaware that Asif knew driving. But admitted that like any other father, he too would be answerable before Allah as regards the upbringing of the children. Mustafa Ali Khan, whose only son – Mahmood – was killed in the accident, forgave the erring boys, thus sparing them and their parents any future hassles. “We have lost the most precious thing of our life. What will it serve if we claim any extent of money?” he said. Haque too forgave the boys responsible for his son's death. However, the tragedy, which has become a hot topic of discussion in many expat gatherings, has left a trail of questions. Why these youths – who had no licenses – were allowed to drive cars? Why the parents failed to notice the dangerous activities of their children? And above all: What has made the youths of today so restless and reckless that they get involve in life-threatnening stunts like ‘car drifting' and ‘car race.' “We have this Playstation culture here where we chase cars. This has led to the boys of my age to try the same on the streets when they have easy access to car keys,” said Osama Akhtar, 16, a class XI student of the Indian International School-Jeddah. Dr. Khurshid Akhtar, an IT Assistant Professor at King Abdul Aziz University in Jeddah, criticized those expatriates who were aping alien cultures. “The expatriates come here to work to support their families. They should try to restrain their children,” he said. Ehsanul Haque, the Convener of Pakistan Repatriation Council (PRC), said: “Schools, being the only other important institution after family, will have to ponder over whether their educational training is corresponding to the growing demands of the new generation children.”
