Outraged vehicle inspectors – 250 out of a full contingent of 800 – have signed a statement denying allegations that some of their colleagues are lax about checking vehicles. A spokesman said that the claim that 450,000 heavy goods vehicles are driving on Portuguese roads illegally due to oversights or omissions on their part, is “absurd” and denied that inspectors are being pressurised by their bosses to ‘pass’ as many vehicles as possible. According to the inspectors, the allegations stem from “supposed colleagues, operating under the cloak of anonymity, and giving briefings that the majority of us don’t accept”.
A joint statement handed in to the Ministry of Internal Administration and the Director-General of Transport, stated that the inspectors “deny the allegations that have been put forward”. The statement reads in part: “We feel offended and humiliated by the suspicions raised about our periodic inspections. Our members in this business are not dummies. They are responsible professionals, conscious of the importance of their role in improving road safety.”
