Cii Radio| Ayesha Ismail| 04 July 2017| 09 Shawaal 1438
Police are on high alert ahead of a looming taxi strike set to take place on July 12. Provincial police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Thulani Zwane said their officers would be deployed to monitor all areas.
The strike has been organised by the South African National Taxi Council (Santaco) and follows the last protest action by taxi drivers that saw main routes into and out of cities blocked off by taxis.
The protests are over the cost of new Toyota Quantums.
Protest action played out in Durban and Johannesburg last month, with traffic gridlocked during morning peak hours.
At the time, drivers gathered at the Totoya manufacturing plant in Prospection, south of Durban, and handed over a Memorandum of Understanding to management, citing their grievances.
“We are appealing to taxi owners to obey the law and not obstruct any traffic from any roads.
“Those who act outside the law will be arrested,” said Zwane. Taxi owners need to respect the rights of other road users who are not part of any march or protests. Their protests must be authorised by municipal officials.”
Mandla Mzelemu, Santaco spokesperson, said members had been advised to progress with the strike if government failed to meet with them.
Calculations into the purchase and insurance of a Quantum, which is government’s preferred taxi option, according to Santaco, are set to cost operators about R1 million. This amount increases when the interest rate, instalments and premiums are added.
Speaking to the Daily News, a local taxi operator said the strike had been called by the national office. However, local operators said they were unaware of any new details.
“What we know for now is that the strike has been proposed, but we have not been given the go-ahead as yet,” the operator said.
Source – IOL News
