Taxi strike starts over finance costs
SANTACO: WANTS FINANCE BODY TO CUT THE CHARGES
Some taxi owners are blacklisted while others’ vehicles have been repossessed.
The possibility of today’s taxi strike in Gauteng stretching into tomorrow cannot be ruled out at this stage, the SA National Taxi Council (Santaco) warned yesterday.
Santaco’s Ralph Jones said whether or not the strike will continue tomorrow will be determined by the response they receive from South African Taxi Finance.
Taxi drivers are marching to the office of the taxi finance body in Midrand today to hand over a memorandum of demands.
Jones added: “Our grievances have to do with the high interest charges we get and the high installments we pay monthly for our taxis.
“A taxi owner pays about R15 000 monthly in installments over 72 months for a taxi and if you are buying a Toyota Quantum worth R457 000, you have to take out a deposit of R50 000 and, on top of all this, one has to pay R2 800 for monthly insurance.
“This is too much and we as taxi owners want to say we have had enough of these exorbitant prices.”
The financial duress caused by this has seen some taxi owners blacklisted while others’ taxis have been repossessed.
He apologised to commuters for the inconvenience caused by the strike, stressing that taxi drivers had no option but to down tools in order to be heard and resolve the situation.
Meanwhile, Johannesburg Metro Police Department Superintendent Wayne Minnaar confirmed today’s planned stayaway.
“We will have a lot of officers deployed and we want to encourage motorists to also work closely with them,” he said.
The march is expected to commence at 7am today. –