KUALA LUMPUR: A public service announcement (PSA) video is gaining traction on social media platforms, urging parents to ensure that their primary school children remember essential contact numbers, either memorised or written inside their school bags.
Shared on the 'Kongsi Viral' channel on Instagram, the video narrated an incident involving a standard six student who was left behind by his school van after a trip to a mosque in Rawang.
The incident came to light when a Foodpanda rider noticed the boy walking under the scorching sun in Rawang, carrying his bag.
Upon questioning, it was revealed that the boy had missed his ride home after attending an event at a nearby mosque and was planning to walk back to his house in Gombak from Rawang.
Shockingly, the boy didn't know the name of his school nor had the contact numbers of his parents memorised.
Even checks inside his school bag and on his books yielded no contact details.
The concerned Foodpanda rider took the boy to a nearby restaurant to figure out how to help.
The people at the restaurant, along with the rider, couldn't allow the boy to walk such a distance alone.
In an effort to find a solution, they asked the boy if his mother had a Facebook account and managed to contact her through the social media platform.
The video, which has garnered nearly 9,000 likes and widespread sharing on social media, highlighted the critical need for parents to ensure their children know their school name and parents' contact numbers for emergency situations.
The narrator also advised parents to jot down their contact information at the back of their children's exercise books for easy reference.
The post has received over 200 comments, with many expressing gratitude for the PSA and sharing their own experiences.
One commenter @tineeeeje, a security guard at a secondary school, shared encounters with new students who didn't recall their parents' numbers.
Another commenter, @mrsbassam wondered if the child in question might be special needs and emphasised the importance of coaching children, even from a young age, to memorise essential information.
"My child from the age of five years-old, I had already coached him to memorise parents numbers,"
Meanwhile, @hairidanialz underscored the significance of school uniforms or sports wear with school logos as a means of easy identification.
"This is why school uniforms or sports wear with school logos are important."
