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| Published Monday, May 17, 2021
By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Wilber Madriz-Arguedas, Mayor of Puntarenas Canton in Puntarenas Province, was fined for breaking the ban-on driving rule on Saturday.
He said he was having lunch at a local restaurant on Saturday afternoon before the soccer match between the Puntarenas F.C. (PFC) and Guanacasteca Sports Association teams.
Madriz admitted he drank 4 beers and a few hours later he drove to the Lito Perez stadium in Puntarenas, where the game was scheduled.
The mayor had to be present at the stadium as part of his duties as a member of the commission of representatives of the municipality, the Ministry of Sports, the Ministry of Health among other organizations. They had to ensure that the sanitary guidelines were being respected to avoid crowds and the risk of increased covid-19 contagion.
However, before reaching the stadium Madriz was stopped while he passed through the street where a routine operation by the traffic officers was taking place.
According to Madriz, the license plate number of his car was banned from driving on Saturday as the reason he was stopped.
Actually, the ban on the driving rule is part of the guidelines ordered by the National Emergency Commission to avoid masses in the streets and the risk of increasing covid-19 contagion.
The ban-on-driving curfew applies to the entire country until the end of this month. Drivers can be on the roads from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. as long as their license plate number isn’t banned. The driving restrictions are based on the last number of the car license plate, on Saturdays vehicles with plates ending in 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 are banned.
The officers also decided to apply the driving under the influence test, DUI, to the mayor. Resulting in positive for " lower" alcohol consumption, Madriz said.
The officers proceeded to remove the license plates from the car and apply the corresponding fine to the mayor.
It is expected that the municipality of Puntarenas publishes today a statement regarding the mayor's actions during his duties.
In addition, due to the large gatherings of people in the streets hours before the game, which was scheduled to start at 9 p.m. and the risk of causing more virus infections, the Ministry of Health ordered the cancelation of the game until further notice.
In several videos published on social media, a crew of soccer fans were shown in the streets, waving flags in celebration of the match. One of those, showing the crowds in the streets just a few hours before the match can be seen on the AM Costa Rica YouTube Channel.
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What should the mayor do to avoid drinking alcohol during working time? We would like to know your thoughts on this story. Send your comments to news@amcostarica.com
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