Who is to blame for deadly crash?

In the wake of the deadly minibus crash in KwaZulu-Natal over the weekend which left 18 people dead, I would like to voice my concern on the way it happened.

It is reported that 26 people were crammed inside the 16-seater vehicle, and this on its own is risky, to say the least. This means that the taxi had 10 more passengers who should not have been there in the first place.

The million-dollar question therefore is: who is to blame? I am of the view that both the driver and passengers were in the wrong in this instance.

I have seen many public transport vehicles overloaded and nobody seems to care. As a passenger who pays to be transported, you have the right to question this form of ill-treatment.

You are within your rights to challenge the driver and explain your discomfort, instead of settling for what may endanger or end your life.

In rural areas in particular, public transport is a huge challenge as you can wait for it for more than two hours, and when the vehicle finally arrives, it is full and overloaded.

This is done without paying attention to ramifications that may arise as a result of this irresponsible behaviour.

This behaviour also stretches to scholar transport, where pupils are mostly crammed in small vehicles by selfish drivers and the parents are not even aware.

It is about time commuters were educated about consumer rights so that they do not submit to the demands of selfish drivers. They must be free enough to tell the driver “stop speeding before you kill us!” This way these horror crashes could be averted.

Taxi owners must also take responsibility for their drivers’ irresponsible behaviour as an accident comes back to haunt them too.

My condolences to the families of those who lost their lives. Pebble Mgiba Hluvukani Village