“Marathons Close Roads Too, Why Can’t We?” RXZ Members Organiser Doubles Down After 46 Accidents

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“Full marathon events can close state and federal roads for 12 hours, and nobody says anything. Why can’t we? We pay road tax. Do runners pay road tax too?”

That was RXZ Members Programme Director Mohd Lukhman Hassan, responding on social media to public backlash over a proposal to temporarily close the East Coast Expressway (LPT1 and LPT2) for a future RXZ Members convoy.

The proposal emerged from a stakeholder engagement session with the Road Transport Department (JPJ) recently, convened following 46 recorded accidents linked to the event.

Mohd Lukhman clarified that it was the Malaysian Highway Authority (LLM) that first raised the closure suggestion, which his team received, he said, in jest.

We don’t actually want it. We just want to point out — Malaysia can, and does, close highways for events.

On the separate question of participant vehicle registration with photo submission — a proposal put forward by JPJ — Mohd Lukhman said his team was open to the idea but lacked the capacity to enforce vehicle specification compliance.

We accept the suggestion. But we have no ability to approve or reject vehicle specifications. If anyone wants to help, they are welcome. Screening 100,000 registrations, flagging non-compliant ones, following up until they pass, that requires another engagement session just to implement. It would be like booking a Puspakom slot.

He closed his post on a harder note.

“One thing to remember — we are the RXZ people. We bow in respect. But we do not allow ourselves to be stepped on. If stepped on, we will push back. We can be bought with respect and malu mato. Not with money. Though pound sterling — Man might consider it,” he added, in what he framed as a joke.

The Public Did the Fact-Checking

The marathon comparison did not survive the comments section.

Several observers independently identified the same gap Mohd Lukhman left unaddressed: marathon road closures are commercial transactions, not civic entitlements.

Event organisers pay highway concessionaires for the closure.

The road does not close as a courtesy — it closes because someone writes a cheque.

“Event larian tutup hiway, pihak konsesi dapat bayaran. Bukan tutup free. Ko ada duit ke nak bayar pihak konsesi?” wrote one commenter.

The road tax argument fared no better; runners, as citizens and car owners, also pay road tax.

@ohadilmedia PART 2596 | “RXZ Members cadang LLM tutup Lebuhraya Pantai Timur – beri laluan kepada rider ke himpunan RXZ #trendingnewsmalaysia #fyp #rxz_members_official #LLM ♬ original sound – Oh Adil Media

Not the Same Road, Not the Same Hours, Not the Same Logic

More pointedly, motorcycles are toll-exempt on Malaysian highways, meaning RXZ Members would be requesting closure of a toll road they do not pay to use, while invoking road tax as their justification.

The geography of the comparison also collapsed under scrutiny.

Marathons use secondary roads, run off-peak hours — typically midnight to 7 am — and have fixed start and finish points.

RXZ Members would be moving an estimated 100,000 motorcycles along an active interstate expressway during daylight hours, with no defined terminus.

“Event marathon xlari ikut highway,” noted one commenter.

Letting The Hospital Speak First

The cost of that logic was already being counted elsewhere.

On Threads, a post from a healthcare worker described what RXZ 8.0 looked like from inside a hospital on event night: five red zone cases involving RXZ riders alone, two intubated.

One patient required a Massive Transfusion Protocol — nearly 10 bags of blood, cleared only after specialist haematology approval was obtained.

Every specialist on the floor was called down at 10 pm to attend a red zone that, in the words of the post, was “mcm tokang pecah” — like a workshop that had burst at the seams — because there was not enough manpower.

“Dia sorang, menyusahkan berpuluh-puluh orang,” the post read. “Berkat ke mcm tu?”

One person. Dozens of others disrupted. Is that a blessing?

A separate post pushed back against the public criticism, arguing that those condemning the event had not seen its other side — the qiamullail sessions, the congregational prayers, the community bonds.

“Kalu bukan sebab RXZ dia akan mati juga,” it read. “Kau jalan kaki kalau sampai ajal pun boleh mati.”

If it’s not because of RXZ, death will still come. You can even die while walking.

View on Threads

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“Marathons Close Roads Too, Why Can’t We?” RXZ Members Organiser Doubles Down After 46 Accidents
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