A man was recently fined by a warden because he left his car window slightly open. This is considered a contravention because it could “encourage” someone to either steal from the car or drive off in it. The man was taken to court for slightly damaging the warden’s car after he was given the fine.
In passing judgement, Magistrate Joseph Apap Bologna said that he had no idea that such a contravention actually existed, and described it as “idiotic”.
Apart from the wardens themselves, there are very few of us who are aware that one could be given a ticket for leaving the car window slightly open. It could be that there are other similar regulations that we do not know about.
We cannot but agree with the magistrate in the way he described the law. It is a piece of legislation that should be scrapped immediately. It would be much better if the wardens were to concentrate on the more serious offences, rather than this.
Leaving a car window slightly down is the natural thing to do in Malta, especially in summer, when the heat is unbearable and the car would be more like an oven if left in the sun for a long period of time. By allowing some air into the car with the windows slightly down makes the heat less oppressive on one’s return.
But this is not really the point.
The point is that, strictly speaking, everything can be described as a provocation to steal. Wearing jewellery is just one example. Carrying a hand-bag or a brief-case is another. Hanging clothes on the roof or leaving them to dry in the balcony. Or, to stretch the argument as close to the car windows regulation as possible, opening windows overlooking the street to let some fresh air in. The list could go on.
As said before, wardens should focus more on other, more serious offences such as reckless driving in inhabited areas (including speeding where there are no speed cameras to record the infringement), making use of a mobile phone while driving and not wearing a seat-belt. It is the contravention of such regulations that puts the lives of people – the driver, passengers, pedestrians and other drivers on the road – in danger.
Or, perhaps, they should be more on the look-out for cars that are parked illegally, some of them blocking the normal flow of traffic; and those that are parked too close to corners, making it nearly impossible for drivers exiting from side-streets to see oncoming traffic, until it is perhaps too late.
The role of wardens should not simply be to dish out fines like hot cakes. They should neither resort to hiding behind everything imaginable – a tree, another vehicle, a telephone box, an electricity pole – and then quickly emerge to stop a car to book its driver with a pleased look on their face, similar to that of a boy who sees his mother punishing his brother for taking his sweets.
Traffic infringements should be punished and wardens are only doing their duty if they do so. But, on the other hand, they should also be a means of educating the people to act better on the road and, more importantly, to make our roads safer.
Booking people for leaving their car window slightly open is not the right way to do things, and wardens will not earn any respect for implementing the law to the letter.
To make things easier, however, ridiculous regulations such as the one mentioned earlier should be removed from the law as quickly as possible. It would remove the temptation for wardens to apply them.