The Parliamentary Finance Committee unanimously rejected the request to release funds totaling €146,000 for the upgrade of the photo enforcement system and the “Photo Radar List,” which would allow for the issuance of out-of-court fines at roadblocks. Members of Parliament sought answers regarding the system’s operation, the legal basis for the procedure, and the large number of undelivered out-of-court notices.
The request concerns modifications to the existing system to enable two-way integration with police systems and the management of the process for serving and tracking out-of-court fines.
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On behalf of the Department of Electromechanical Services, Achilles Pilias stated that the current contractor had to modify its system and integrate it with the Police’s systems. As he explained, the integration has been completed and the procedure can now be implemented; however, when the relevant instructions were issued, the funding had not yet been allocated by Parliament. He also noted that there was an opinion from the Legal Service concluding that they could proceed with the service of process.
Mr. Pilias noted that further integration of the systems is required, while clarifying that the system had been operating in a test environment and had not yet been put into full production.
AKEL MP Aristos Damianou asked for clarification on whether the data linkage had been approved by the Commissioner for the Protection of Personal Data. Mr. Pilias replied that the data linkage had been approved at the outset of the contract in 2022.
Mr. Damianou argued that there had been no initial provision for serving extrajudicial notices at roadblocks and that, as he put it, the release of the funds was an attempt to to legitimize a practice he considers illegal.
“It is unacceptable to serve notices at roadblocks to Greek Cypriots,” he said.
Mr. Damianou also argued that the procedure applies to pedestrians crossing the checkpoints and expressed the view that this practice creates political issues and turns the crossing points into “hard border.”
The police, for their part, stated that identity checks at the checkpoints are lawful and that the out-of-court notice is served on the citizen, who then has 90 days to pay it.
AKEL MP Andreas Pasiourtides argued that the proposed change is essentially aimed at reducing costs for the company operating the system and referred to the large number ofout-of-court settlements.
Regarding Turkish Cypriot vehicles, Mr. Pasiourtides questioned why the company needs access to specific data and why it needs to use the list from the automated license plate recognition system.
The company explained that the vehicle’s registration number needs to be forwarded to the police, so that it can be located and stopped at the roadblock, thereby completing the process of service and monitoring of the extrajudicial notice.
The company stated that the original contract did not include a provision for two-way data exchange between the two systems and that part of the proposed change pertains precisely to this capability.
ELAM MP Marios Pelekanos argued that the photo enforcement system functions more as a mechanism for collecting fines than as a measure to prevent traffic accidents, and stated that his party would not support the release of the funds.
ALMA President Odysseas Michaelides noted that this is not merely an amendment to the existing contract and stated that the matter should have been referred to a different, appropriate procedure.
As he put it, the officials “are coming here to legitimize an illegality,” a position contested by the government agencies, which cited the Legal Service’s opinion.
Yiannis Laouris, a member of parliament for Direct Democracy, raised the issue of cost, describing the amount as excessive in relation to the scope of the work to be done and asking the company for a detailed justification of the changes it plans to implement.
The Police and the company explain the procedure
The police stated that at roadblocks, the out-of-court notice is issued through their own system and that, based on the opinion of the Legal Service, the process can be carried out through an interface with the automated traffic enforcement system.
For vehicles registered in the TOM system, the process can be carried out using the available data, while for Turkish Cypriot vehicles, data must be collected as they pass through the checkpoints.
The company stated that the proposed change does not concern just one piece of software, but the entire system for processing violations, including camera systems, public access to information, and operational procedures. He also noted that additional training for call center staff would be required.
In remarks following the Committee meeting, the Chair of the Finance Committee, DIKO MP Chrysis Pantelidis, stated that the Committee unanimously rejected, for the second consecutive meeting, the executive branch’s request to allocate €146,000 for improving the system for issuing traffic citations at roadblocks.
As he explained, the Committee was not convinced of the necessity of this specific allocation, since, as became clear during the two meetings, a large portion of the proposed measures is already being implemented.
Mr. Pantelidis stated that the main reason for the rejection is the gaps and weaknesses identified in the photo-enforcement system, regarding which, as he said, the Commission has not yet received convincing answers.
He made special mention of the undelivered traffic tickets, describing the number as “strikingly high” and “unusually high by Cypriot standards.”
“Until we are convinced that the executive branch understands this problem or until it introduces a legislative solution to this problem, we are unwilling to continually allocate funds that are merely a band-aid solution to a major problem,” she said.
DISY MP Fotini Tsiridou noted that to date there are approximately 180,000 unprocessed out-of-court claims and expressed concern about the allocation of new funds to improve the system.
As she said, the Ministry should submit an amendment bill to modernize the process for serving out-of-court notices.
He added that it is not so simple to allocate funds paid for by taxpayers when the system is not functioning, noting that responses from the Ministry are awaited.
AKEL MP Aristos Damianou stated that the Committee has found that the executive branch, the Police, and the relevant ministries have not provided convincing answers regarding the method of serving out-of-court notices, arguing that “they are mocking and misleading the House.”
As he noted, for the past three years, in response to questions and pressure from Parliament, various answers have been recorded, while, as he argued, attempts are being made to circumvent the legal procedure for serving extrajudicial notices by stopping citizens at roadblocks.
Mr. Damianou raised the issue of a possible violation of personal data and the humiliating treatment of citizens, arguing that this practice is applied not only to vehicles of Turkish Cypriot origin, but also to Greek Cypriots.
“Under no circumstances will we release even €1 for procedures that fall outside the letter of the law,” he said, adding that when citizens are legally informed of the existence of an out-of-court settlement, they must either comply or seek legal recourse.
ELAM MP Marios Pelekanos stated that no convincing answers were provided by the relevant authorities even during today’s session and noted that the Committee unanimously voted againstthe budget line.
He noted that the large number of undelivered extrajudicial notices demonstrates that the process is not functioning properly and requires regulation specifying a more precise method of service.
At the same time, he raised a political dimension to the issue, noting that while the service of extrajudicial notices at ports and airports has been exempted, this practice is currently being enforced at roadblocks and, as he said, also affects Greek Cypriots.
He also raised issues concerning vehicles entering the free areas from the occupied territories, pointing to questions regarding their quality, suitability, and specifications.
Yiannis Laouris, a member of the House of Representatives for the Republic of Cyprus, described the fact that approximately 185,000 out-of-court settlements are pending as “outrageous.”
As he noted, this number could give the impression that about one in three Cypriots is breaking traffic laws, while at the same time, the state does not have the addresses of such a large number of citizens because it has failed to serve them with the notices.
Source: CNA
