Jumblat Hails Policeman who Asked Him to Wear Seatbelt

Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat on Tuesday said he has learned a lesson he'll never forget after he was stopped at a checkpoint in downtown Beirut.

“As I was driving back home yesterday, I was taken by the performance of an unknown soldier at an Internal Security Forces' checkpoint in downtown Beirut, who asked me politely and courteously to wear my seatbelt, telling me: 'Mr. Walid, the seatbelt protects you,'” said Jumblat in a press release.

“This phrase taught me a lesson I will never forget and confirmed to me that the ISF is an important asset and a security valve for all the Lebanese. More importantly, it sent me an essential message about the culture of citizenship, which is often disregarded by the political class, of which the majority are experts in providing cover for law violators instead of being the symbol of implementing it,” Jumblat added.

“How I wish that the entire political class would draw lessons from this example, perhaps that would restore some of the citizens' lost confidence and create a space for enhancing the concept of the culture of law, which only state institutions and agencies can implement,” the Druze leader went on to say.

He saluted the Internal Security Forces for their “mighty efforts in performing their duties, all the way from seatbelt enforcement to the protection of stability and civil peace.”

“I also salute (caretaker) Interior Minister Marwan Charbel for his continuous efforts to preserve security amid the peak of political and sectarian divisions. He has managed through his performance to assert that the state is the first and last sanctuary for us all, politicians and citizens.”