Kgatleng Taxis form Association
Kgatleng taxi operators have moved to form an association, Mochudi Taxi Association that is meant to address challenges experienced by members.
Secretary of the new Association, Mothuse Ratladi says after realising their numerous struggles within their industry, they noticed that for them to bring change and better their field, they must come together as one and advocate for members and empower them in all matters regarding their trade.
Ratladi’s headache is that currently, some of them have not recovered from the harsh effects of the Covid-19 movement restrictions at the height of the pandemic. “We had no representative to even discuss our predicament with government. We were alone and helpless. We were frustrated that at the time, buses and combis were operational but we were shutdown,” Ratladi said, adding that even after the lifting of restrictions, they were only allowed to carry three passengers.
They are hoping that by launching the Association, their voice will be more audible to those in authority. That is why they are appealing to operators in the district to join them in large numbers. Eventually, according to Ratladi, they will be affiliates of the Botswana Taxi Association, which is the mother body.
Among their concerns are rapid fuel hikes that continue to deplete their income. “We don’t make enough money, P7 is not enough and government is not saying anything about how we will be helped to survive,” he says. What they advocate for is that government considers introducing millage charges for taxis, and get rid of the flat rate.
Ratladi further complains that in 2020 when government increased the taxi fare from P5 to P6, they wondered how they arrived at the amount. Recently, fares were increased to P7.
Ratladi further adds that the current permit charges are also unreasonable. For example, a transfer permit used to be P500 but now has been increased to up to P1500 and P1800. “This essentially means that if we have unfit cars we are restricted to change permits to cars that are more road
worthy because of the permit price,” he said, adding that they end up using old cars that also attract fines from the Police.
Another burning issue that plagues the industry is that taxi drivers are known to be ‘sleeping’ with young schoolgirls. Their immediate plan is to change this negative perception. They have engaged in workshops and plan to do so in future where they would gather different stakeholders to deal with the issue. “We continuously encourage our members to stay away from school children, but to look at them as their own children,” Ratladi said, adding that this perception tarnishes their name.
Recently, the Association engaged in a Corporate Social Responsibility initiative where they donated stationary to Kgabo Sereto Primary School, as the school community uses their transport daily.