A female taxi driver from Debrecen shared her unpleasant experience with police officers in a local Facebook group after being stopped by law enforcement in the city. She described the situation as follows:
“I’m very angry and feel deeply humiliated. I was fined by the police. It’s not the fine itself that bothers me, but how it happened.”
According to her post, she had stopped in a roadside parking space on Péterfia Street, next to a pub terrace. As a taxi driver, she’s not required to wear a seatbelt when carrying a passenger, but once the passenger exits, the driver must buckle up. She admits she failed to do so.
“This is what our law enforcers noticed. They immediately pulled up beside me with their van, using their emergency lights. There was parking space behind me, but they still blocked traffic unnecessarily next to me. (In fact, I believe it was dangerous, as other drivers had to overtake them on the tram tracks, while trams were still running. Just one inattentive driver could have caused a collision!)”
She said two officers approached her, informed her of the infraction, and took her documents. Then, two more officers arrived to perform a breathalyzer test.
“I don’t mind the test—I condemn drunk driving! But standing there in front of the terrace crowd was utterly humiliating.”
She was fined 20,000 forints on the spot and given three penalty points for failing to use the seatbelt.
“From now on, I’ll always buckle up! Because if I forget again after a passenger gets out, I’ll eventually lose my license due to the penalty points!”
She concluded her post by calling for more proportional enforcement:
“This rule was supposedly introduced for my safety—to help me escape quickly in case of an attack. But lawmakers and enforcers should consider: am I in more danger by not wearing my seatbelt or by fearing punishment so much that I always wear it?”
And finally, she left this message for the officers:
“One last note: if I and thousands of others like me don’t work, you, dear police officers, won’t have uniforms, BMWs, fuel, or paychecks—since those are funded by our taxes! So please, if possible, handle minor violations with less spectacle and less arrogance.
See how unpleasant that is to read?
Do your jobs—but don’t abuse your power. Thank you very much!”
The story was posted in the “Debrecenben hallottam” group.
The image is for illustration purposes only.
(Debreceni Nap)
