Santaco shows green credentials with anti-littering drive
THE SA National Taxi Association (Santaco) has urged the public to stop littering and urinating in taxi ranks and other public spaces because it has a negative impact on the environment.
Santaco spokesperson Sfiso Shangase said they had partnered with the ethekwini Municipality to help clean the city, which was increasingly becoming filthy due to negligent people who had zero respect for the environment.
Shangase was reacting to efforts made by the municipality’s Rapid Response Team (RRT), which is currently clearing illegal dumping, cleaning communities and addressing other health-related issues.
“We are working together with the city and government to clean our taxi ranks and ensure that they remain so because this is one of the most important sectors of our economy.
“Personally, I don’t think it is okay to discard litter on the pavements and road kerbs.
“People are not concerned about the negative impact it has on our lives. Cleanliness is next to godliness,” Shangase said.
“We will ensure that we educate not only our passengers, but also street vendors who operate within taxi ranks.
They, too, have a responsibility to ensure their businesses run in a clean place. Taxi drivers must lead by example and reprimand passengers who litter,” Shangase said.
ethekwini Municipality’s spokesperson Msawakhe Mayisela said that for the city to succeed they must have partnerships with people and engage in an aggressive campaign to raise awareness around littering.
“In Pinetown taxi rank we worked with taxi drivers to address the problem of littering. Clean cities attract investments and help protect the environment,” he said.
Mayisela said that those living inland must be made aware that litter flows into the ocean and destroys marine life.
Environmental activist Kieran Bauristhene said people must take responsibility for, and pride in, their environment.
“We must enforce pride in our communities and stop littering because no one wants to live in a dirty area. The attitude that by littering we create jobs is totally wrong and unacceptable. We must change our attitude and teach our children to keep our environment clean,” Bauristhene said.
Yesterday, the RRT addressed service delivery challenges, issued traffic fines, targeted illegal trading, noise pollution, the washing of taxis on the road, and the removal of litter in the drainage system. It also focused on clearing illegal dumping, cleaning unhygienic areas, repairing street lights, fixing potholes, and addressing health-related issues including fire hazards and non-compliance with by-laws by business owners.