Quickly warn via Twitter about an alcohol check? Forget it. During the new bob campaign, which starts at the end of this month, the police are focusing more than ever on flying brigades. With such a 'bob-up check', agents stay in one place for fifteen minutes and then quickly reappear in another location. “In this way, we increase the quality and the chance of detection of our inspections”, says competent minister Jan Jambon (N-VA).
A quick look at Twitter shows that social media makes things quite difficult for the police. For example, if you keep an eye on the tweets of Police Control and Flash Control, you can easily circumvent an action. Yesterday alone, forty messages about planned and unannounced police checks were listed. Often in detail: “Abeelstraat, in Mechelen. Police are halfway down the street.” Or: “Paalsesteenweg, Beringen, near the snack bar.”
“We want to increase the quality of our audits. That is why our police forces have to work smart. And that can be done by organizing quick and short checks. You will see it even more often during the upcoming bob campaign," says Olivier Van Raemdonck, spokesperson for competent minister Jan Jambon.
A 'bob-up check' can sometimes be over after half an hour, after which the police services move to another location. "That surprise effect is really necessary if we want to pick drunk drivers out of traffic," said Peter Dewaele, spokesman for the federal police. “That is why we are also sending extra police officers out on the road during this campaign to detect conspicuous driving behaviour. A car that brakes and accelerates abruptly, that suddenly deviates from its lane or starts to swing: we will pick those drivers out of traffic faster.”
For the upcoming bob campaign, the police have set themselves the target of 250,000 alcohol checks. As much as last year. That number was easily achieved: a total of 409,000 drivers had to blow. The question is whether that objective will also be achieved in this bob campaign. Police services are still heavily questioned by the terror level 3. “The police services are indeed under pressure, but that is no reason to reduce the number of alcohol checks. This remains a top priority”, according to Jambon. Police union VSOA does fear band work. “Such a target does not benefit the quality of our audits. If we have a driver blown, we also have to ask for his vehicle documents. And check whether the car is insured and registered. We cannot guarantee that at the moment," said spokesman Vincent Houssin.
Source: The newspapaer 15/11/2016
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