During an Easter when three times the number of people died on the nation’s roads than died last year, prime minister Luís Montenegro appeared in a promotional video, as a backseat passenger in his official car, not wearing a seatbelt.
The video also showed the PM’s driver at the wheel, ostensibly also not wearing a seatbelt.
The furore that erupted appears to have been fleeting. Barely a furore, even. The office of the prime minister admitted that yes, the country’s head of government recorded a promotional video when he wasn’t wearing a seatbelt (as is required by law) – but they claimed Mr Montenegro’s driver was actually wearing a seatbelt, “under his jacket”.
The thing with this rather ridiculous story at a time when authorities were beseeching the country to ‘drive safetly’, is that it exposes just how much Portuguese VIPs are shielded from compliance with the law, compared to VIPs in other countries, like – for instance – Great Britain.
It wasn’t that long ago that the then British prime minister Rishi Sunak also appeared in a promotional political video ‘not wearing a seatbelt’.
The furore that followed was much more expressive than the one involving Mr Montenegro – and Mr Sunak ended up being fined €100.
There is no inference at all that Mr Montenegro will be charged for his transgression.
Meantime, the number of deaths and accidents on the roads this year was markedly higher than last Easter. Perhaps it was because the weather was so good, leading to more people setting out on the roads. Whatever the reasons, it shows that the entreaties by police forces, etc., to citizens to exercise all possible caution were not getting through. They didn’t even get through to the country’s prime minister.
