Director of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice Sheikh Ibrahim Al-Ghaith spoke about some important issues in an interview published in the local press last week. The interview followed news about the involvement of two commission members in a high-speed car chase that led to the deaths of a young man and woman in Tabuk.
Five major points caught my attention in Al-Ghaith’s speech:
1. He said that the accused were innocent until proven guilty and that necessary steps would be taken against anyone found to be involved.
2. Commission members are not immune from the system. They are treated just like everybody else. He added that the commission is another governmental body that is governed by the same rules and regulations.
3. Giving chase is totally prohibited by the commission regardless of the situation or reason. There is a list of regulations signed by all commission members, which includes instructions not to give chase. It has been proven that chasing only brings harm rather than good and that this leads to placing at risk the lives of others. Commission members know that if they are able to arrest someone peacefully that’s fine, but if someone escapes then they should take the car’s registration number and refer them to the police.
4. If any member’s conduct or behavior harms the overall noble deeds that the commission is doing then he or she will be subjected to questioning and punishment, and that sometimes they are handed office work instead of field work. Al-Ghaith does not believe that people who defame the commission should be a part of it.
5. A commission member who commits a mistake should be questioned and punished according to the law just like other government employees. Sometimes the media does not fairly report stories related to the organization.
Al-Ghaith’s talk indicates his wisdom and good manners. We might soon see all commission members adopting the same etiquette. Logic and balance are necessary components in creating justice.
