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Home / World

Woman who drove for 23 years without licence reveals she still doesn't have one

Heath Moore
By Heath Moore
NZ Herald·
13 Oct, 2017 01:35 AM2 mins to read

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A video of a woman in Australia admitting to never having had a driver's licence is going viral.

The woman who went viral after revealing she had been driving without a licence for 23 years has admitted she still does not have one.

Melbourne woman Isileta Afamasaga rose to fame when she appeared on Australia's Highway Patrol where a traffic policeman pulled her over as she was driving her deceased husband's car.

The officer asked her for her licence before she revealed she been driving around without one for a whopping 23 years.

The stunned officer suggested she gets a licence before going in front of a judge.

However, Afamasaga told the Herald she still doesn't have a licence following the incident in 2016.

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"I don't have a licence! Why should I? I have a driving licence for Samoa but Australia doesn't recognise it. No, no, no. I haven't driven since I got pulled over.

"My husband use to drive me around but now I can get my daughter to drive me everywhere! Otherwise, I'll just take the bus," she laughed.

Isileta Afamasaga rose to fame after her interaction with a police officer on Highway Patrol. Photo/Cairns 7/Facebook
Isileta Afamasaga rose to fame after her interaction with a police officer on Highway Patrol. Photo/Cairns 7/Facebook

On the show, the police officer fined the cheerful Afamasaga $200 and ordered her to face the magistrate.

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But a year later, the Samoan-born Afamasaga is still waiting for fine and court appearance letters to arrive.

"I still haven't got the letter or a fine. It's been a year since I was pulled over and I don't know where it has been sent."

As for fame, Afamasaga said she has been recognised by people in the community since the Highway Patrol screening, but admitted her family haven't always seen the funny side.

"My family all got angry at me! They have told me to go and get a licence and said 'What are you doing!'. My husband would always drive me around.

"Some of my friends and work colleagues have recognised me from the TV and found it funny.

Afamasaga made it clear she doesn't endorse breaking the law, but she has a message for drivers:

"Don't get aggressive to the cops. I like to try a different way. When I saw him (the cop) and I started laughing and he was very calm.

"If you don't do anything wrong and you drive safely then you'll never get caught.

"But if you don't have your licence then don't drive."

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