“Lebanon Debate”
A circulated photo of workers from the Sin El Fil municipality raised a wave of questions about public safety standards, after they appeared commuting to work, standing in the back of an open pickup truck while it was driving on the road, in a scene that exposes them to the risk of falling or being injured in the event of any accident or sudden stop.
In this context, the founder of the “YASA” association, Dr. Ziad Akl, in an interview with “Lebanon Debate,” criticized the method of transporting workers, considering that what happens in transporting people or even goods in this way is “absolutely unacceptable,” especially when the concerned party is a municipality that is supposed to be in the position of enforcing the law and respecting traffic rules.
Akl said: “Today the Sin El Fil municipality, which is supposed to have a municipal police that enforces the traffic law, its workers are violating it,” considering that the scene constitutes “a scandal committed by the president and members of the Sin El Fil municipality.”
He pointed out that “the problem is not limited to one municipality,” noting that similar practices had been recorded in the Beirut Municipality and a number of other municipalities, stressing that the municipality, as an agency concerned with enforcing laws, should not be the same person in the position of violating them.
Akl sent a call under the name “YASA” to the municipalities of Sin El Fil, Beirut, and other municipalities, saying: You must apply the traffic law to yourselves, and not just to the citizens. Apply it to people and to yourselves.”
He also called on the Ministry of Interior and Municipalities to take action to ensure respect for safety conditions in transporting workers, stressing the necessity of giving value to human life, regardless of their nationality, and not allowing people to be transported in ways that endanger their safety.
He added: “People’s lives are in danger and their safety is in danger, and there must be adherence to the traffic law,” considering that what is happening reflects a disregard for people’s lives that should not be rejected by “YASA” alone, but rather by the entire Lebanese society.
