While driving a car, Waldemar Żurek failed to yield to a woman crossing at a pedestrian crossing. The head of the Ministry of Justice commented on the incident, which occurred during the recording of an interview. He stated that “road safety rules apply to everyone,” but left the final assessment to the police.
Failing to yield to a pedestrian at a crossing carries a fine of 1,500 PLN and 15 penalty points.
Waldemar Żurek was caught committing this offense while giving an interview behind the wheel. At one point, while turning, he passed the crossing just as a woman stepped onto it. The interviewer drew his attention to it, saying, “Please be careful! You almost drove over that lady.”
The Minister of Justice began offering a somewhat evasive explanation. However, this did not convince internet users and commentators, who clearly assessed that a traffic offense had occurred.
Żurek’s Comment
A few hours later, Żurek himself spoke out, apparently still unsure whether traffic regulations had been violated.
“Road safety rules apply to everyone. However, the final assessment belongs to the Police. We are all equal before the law. If an offense did occur, I will not evade responsibility,” he commented.
The Kraków police (the program was recorded in the capital of the Małopolska region) did not respond to questions from the portal Niezalezna.pl regarding the recorded incident.
Road safety was the topic of the minister’s press conference that day. However, the focus was on much more serious offenses than traffic violations – namely, crimes related to driving despite a court-imposed driving ban and the revocation of driving privileges. Żurek emphasized the need to assess the current situation so that the state can “react faster and more consistently.” He also pointed to weak prevention measures in this area.