Yesterday, I received a TP summon in my mail saying I parked
illegally and had to pay $70. Honestly, if that was really the
clear-cut case, I don't mind paying. But this was what
happened:
I was at Eastwood there at around 8pm at night last tuesday,
dropped my dad off as he wanted to buy something from cold storage
there. Then, I just waited in my car for him to come back. A short
while later, I noticed a vespa coming up behind me. As it was quite
dark, I couldn't quite make out who was on the vespa, except its
headlamp was really bright. I thought it was just another rider on
the road initially.
However, this rider stopped behind me. As I was quite tired
after a long day that time, I didn't really bother to step out and
see who it was. But, after 15-20 secs, I sort of smelled a rat and
come out to look. I noticed it was one of those parking warden
fellas. He was so fat that he looked like he was 10 times the
weight of his vespa. Anyway, I digress.
That person was actually one of those parking wardens. One of
every driver's common enemy. I just asked him what he wanted and he
told me I couldn't park there. At the same time my dad came out
from cold storage and got into the car. Before leaving, I, who was
already quite tired, just let out a loud sigh of frustration,
saying, "Life Sucks!". And then I drove off.
1 week 1 day later, which was yesterday, I received the summon
in my mail. Really, I am super pissed. Firstly, I was in the car
and I actually drove off. Secondly, I have a friend who was caught
speeding recently and as he was a first time offender, he was only
let off with a warning. I am also a first time offender but I got
fined!! Really, since when was speeding a less serious offence than
mine? If you speed, you can cause people to get hurt. I don't know
how parking a car illegally can potentially cause bodily harm to
anyone?
For those who live around that area, you should know where I am
talkng about. I parked in the small road that is next to the
Eastwood building where the cold storage is. That spot is a place
where most drivers going to cold storage park there always park.
Actually, if I was not in the car and I got summoned, then fine, I
got nothing to say. But I was there, and I moved off when the fella
told me to! And I got fined!
The only thing I can think of is that maybe that parking warden
is a highly sensitive prick with a deprived childhood where he was
sodomised by his dad or something and when I raised my voice a
little to show frustration, he took offence. Honestly, if that was
the case, then I don't know what to say. I didn't even scold the
person and come on, a bit only you get offended?! Just because I
didn't react like as though I was totally apologetic you fine
me?
The fact is that I believed that I followed orders. Whether I
was reluctant to do so or not was beside the point. The bottomline,
I did what the prick told me to do and moved away. I felt that a
warning would have sufficed for this case. Even if I was to be
fined, the prick should at least have the courtesy to give me a
ticket on the spot or tell me verbally.
Personally, this, to me, makes the Traffic Police reflect badly
in my opinion. Yes, even though the prick wasn't directly employed
by them, the fact is that TP paid his company to carry out their
dirty work. Whatever they do is representative of the TP image and
it was totally tarnished. Ok, we know that the TP is made up of a
bunch of idiots. But on top of that, they are idiots without class,
without courtesy, probably worser than barbarians in terms of
personal character.
Last year or something, I remembered Straits Times interviewed
some of these people in an article and they said that many times
they were scolded and insulted by other drivers. Well, if thats the
way that they conduct themselves, I say they fully deserve it!
Dunno if anyone here has been in a similar situation as me
before? I guess I will have to pay the fine. Don't think I will
succeed in appealing and really, I'm too busy in the upcoming weeks
to deal with all this shit.