Traffic officers are in the spotlight once again, after a resident claimed he was victimised during a stop-and-go two weeks ago.
Francois Panther, a well-known businessman, claimed he was pulled over by a traffic official at a routine stop-and-go. After his vehicle came to a standstill, he was approached by an official who requested to see his licence.
“I was searching for my licence when this lady came storming up to my vehicle, shoved the other official away and told him she would deal with me, as she had been looking for me for a long time,” he alleged.
According to Mr Panther, that is when he recognised the woman, and said he had clamped her vehicle a few months ago for allegedly illegally parking for the disabled.
“This was her way of trying to get back at me for what had happened back then. I told her I did not want to work with her and she should allow the other officer to proceed with his work,” explained Mr Panther.
Mr Panther alleged the officer said she didn’t care what he wanted, and she would do as she pleased. He said at that point he felt humiliated by the way she treated him in front of fellow officers and drivers.
“I was frustrated by the fact that I did not know at this point where my licence was, but I continued to search as I knew I always kept it in the console of my car. I politely asked her to use my ID number in the meantime to verify I was a valid driver and my vehicle belonged to me.”
He claimed she told him he was a liar and proceeded to write out a fine. He noticed one of the official’s superiors was also present and decided to report the incident to him. After explaining the entire history he had with the official, Mr Panther was allegedly told the superior could not intervene, as the woman was only doing her job.
“Luckily, my son found my licence and I showed it to the woman, who still continued to harass me about the fact that I could not find my licence and then all of a sudden I had it. I told her I was only human and I also made mistakes. I thought I had lost my licence,” he explained.
The incident was reported to Protection Services Chief, Ashok Anandhaw, who responded to the allegations by saying he was investigating the incident.
“I cannot go on only one side of a story. I will be meeting with Mr Panther, the official and my director soon, and will get to the truth of what happened,” he concluded.
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