Bus Drivers in Tripoli Protest As Coronavirus Ruins Their Business

As the Coronavirus keeps growing in the number of people that it infects, businesses have begun to feel the impact. The total shutdown of many countries and travel bans have affected the movement of money. And when money is stagnant, the economy is bound to suffer.

With people more and more afraid of being crammed into public spaces, it is, of course, logical that they would avoid riding public transportation, which has impacted that sector.

This is why bus drivers in Tripoli decided to close down the main road leading to Beirut in protest of these conditions.

Those drivers are protesting that the government is not taking action in regards to their situation caused by the Coronavirus’s impact on their businesses.

In Al-Tal square, the drivers previously organized a protest during which the Vice President of the Land Travel Union and President of the North Lebanese Drivers Association, Shadi Al-Sayed, went on to say the following:

“Our next move could be to close down Palma road as an expression of our suffering in the fight against the Coronavirus and the government’s inaction.”

He expressed the grief of the bus drivers as they began to lose their businesses to the grip of the virus, and called on the government to compensate for their losses.

“We are in the grips of a tragic situation,” he stressed, pointing out at that those benefiting still are “these drivers who choose to operate illegally at the expense of those who are law-abiding. We call on the Interior Ministry to take action,” he said.

He then added, “Today, we demand to be compensated,” stating that they are “asking this from the Ministry of Social Affairs, the High Relief Commission, and the rest of the government.”

He warns that the closing down of roads is only the beginning and that there will be further actions if their demands are not met.

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