Clampdown on crime and drugs at city’s taxi ranks
The South African National Taxi Association (Santaco), in collaboration with Msunduzi Municipality, will be clamping down on crime and drugs at local taxi ranks starting from next week.
A behind-closed-doors meeting between the association, municipal political heads, and the National Department of Transport held at the City Hall yesterday, resulted in a consensus that action was needed to curb the proliferation of drugs and crime in taxi ranks.
The meeting also agreed on the need for all stakeholders to ensure the cleanliness of the facilities around the city.
Before the meeting, the various stakeholders did a walkabout at various ranks where they interacted with commuters and taxi operators.
The stakeholders included Santaco, led by its regional chairperson Themba Mweli, transport deputy minister Lisa Mangcu, Msunduzi Mayor Mzimkhulu Thebolla, his deputy Mxolisi Mkhize, and members of the city and Santaco security clusters.
At the Retief Street taxi rank, commuters complained about the open space across the road where the (eMatsheni) beer hall once stood. The area is now a thoroughfare for whoonga addicts. The concern over the eyesore led to the officials walking across, gathering the makeshift tents and cardboard material and setting them alight to clear the space.
Mweli said the stakeholders spoke in one voice about the state of the ranks and what needed to be done to improve the facilities.
“From next week the deputy mayor will draft a programme of action that will guide all of us on what roles we play in getting rid of crime and drugs in the taxi ranks, starting from the Retief Street taxi rank.
“The operation will include both the city and Santaco security personnel, and any resistance in cleaning our places of work will not be tolerated. Our customers deserve better than what they are getting and we all agreed that the state of these ranks warranted coordinated action by all the stakeholders,” said Mweli.
He said they have been looking forward to a time when stakeholders would engage and discuss the state of local ranks.
“We are sure that, where we work, we don’t accommodate drug addicts and peddlers. That vacant space across the Retief Street rank is a concern.
“This rank itself was the worst affected by drug addiction and since our intervention by bringing in our security, that’s a thing of the past. Now we want the municipality to give us that open space to use as a holding area.
“There will be no addicts there. Our ranks are full, so using that space would benefit both the city and the taxi industry,” he said.
Deputy Minister Mangcu said the ranks should be crime and drug-free for the sake of commuters.
“This is the industry that moves our economy so we can’t resolve its challenges while sitting in our offices. We are dealing with crime and grime and dealing with drugs is a police function.
“Drugs find traction in the ranks because that is where people are moving and remember, drugs must be sold to people and therefore, all stakeholders should play their part in dealing with the proliferation of drugs in taxi ranks,” said Mangcu.
Mayor Thebolla encouraged collaboration between the stakeholders and stressed that rank cleanliness, including the state of the toilets, required all involved to work together.
“We will be attending to all these issues and the toilets are an urgent matter on our agenda. Lack of lights at the ranks and the washing of cars at the ranks are other issues that require urgent attention.
“As for the open space across the Retief Street rank (eMatsheni), there are municipal land use management by-laws that determine how land should be used according to zoning. That area carries some Pietermaritzburg history so whatever it is used for must not sideline its original purpose,” said Thebolla.