Media Release by Daylin Mitchell, Western Cape Minister of Transport and Public Works
Over the past week, taxi protest action has marred the Nyanga residential area. This has resulted in incessant incidents of violence and damage to property.
A number of Golden Arrow buses and other commercial vehicles have been torched during the illegal protest action. Other public transport operators have also been threatened and intimidated. Cases have been registered with the South African Police Services in the Nyanga area.
It is claimed that the protest action has been orchestrated by sedan/Avanza operators providing minibus-taxi type services (“amaphela operators”). These operators are allegedly unhappy with law enforcement initiatives in the Nyanga area that resulted in the impoundment of illegal “amaphela” vehicles.
My department has a good partnership with the Western Cape Branch of the South African National Taxi Council (SANTACO) and we have always endeavoured to resolve key challenges facing the taxi industry by means of deliberation. We condemn this senseless violence and damage to property. We have met with SANTACO and we call on them to intervene and to take all reasonable steps to preclude further misconduct on the part of its members and members’ drivers.
These are organised criminal actions that require intervention from the South African Police Services. I urge the Western Cape Provincial Police Commissioner to make available the required resources to investigate these cases using the relevant provisions of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act and to bring the perpetrators to book. There must be consequences for this type of contemptuous behaviour.
I am cognisant of the fact that the majority of the residents of Nyanga are captive to public transport to actively participate in the economy and to access other social and economic opportunities. We have a duty as a government to provide services to communities in a sustainable manner and to ensure a safe and dignified environment for public transport users.
These unlawful actions have completely disrupted travel patterns and brought fear and instability in the community of Nyanga and its surrounds. The situation is deteriorating to such an extent that the safety of commuters and residents in the area is at risk.
I am in the process of consulting with other regulatory stakeholders and it may be necessary to declare the Nyanga area as high-risk in respect of taxi violence. This will allow me to invoke my powers in terms of section 91 of the National Land Transport Act (Act no.5 of 2009) to close certain ranks and routes should the situation deteriorate any further. Other regulatory interventions are also being considered to stabilise the situation.
We are monitoring the area closely and we have asked both the SAPS and law enforcement agencies to sustain the efforts in the Nyanga area in the interest of our commuters.
Media Queries:
Ntomboxolo Makoba-Somdaka
Spokesperson for Minister Daylin Mitchell
Cell: 082 953 0026
Email: Ntomboxolo.Makoba-Somdaka@westerncape.gov.za