Taxi strike averted, but threat remains

THE massive taxi strike planned for Wednesday is off for now, but taxi operators warned they would take to the streets again if need be.

After failing to find a resolution following years of negotiations with a host of previous ministers of transport, the South African National Taxi Association (Santaco) vowed it would not entertain any further “delaying” tactics from the Department of Transport.

Santaco, during a joint media briefing by the department and the association in Hatfield, Pretoria, yesterday, confirmed that the massive national strike by taxi operators had been postponed.

The organisation said the strike would be postponed while meetings with the relevant stakeholders continued.

“We will pressure stakeholders to commit to addressing our issues timeously during meetings.

“But we will not carry on with meetings that are getting us nowhere or frustrating us,” said Santaco deputy president Boy Zondi.

Zondi said: “We have been dealing with the department for years now, and decided that we can’t stay in boardrooms any more discussing these issues. We have bought our takkies and will not hesitate to use them should there be no progress.”

Transport Minister Joe Maswanganyi said meetings held with Santaco highlighted three integral issues to be resolved in the short and long term, the first relating to calls for the industry to be subsidised.

Maswanganyi said that considering how the sector accounted for 68% of the daily commuting public, subsidies to the industry needed to be addressed as a matter of urgency.

Operating licence administration backlogs and access to reasonable finance agreements that did not cripple operators were among the issues raised. Acting Director-General Mathabatha Mokonyama said committees would be created to deal with the issues that were hampering the sector and help find individual solutions to problems each province was battling with.

Mokonyama said the Taxi Recapitalisation Programme was another platform that was under review.

Maswanganyi said he supported ANC treasurer-general Zweli Mkize’s statements that the taxi industry should be brought into the mainstream of radical socio-economic transformation.

“The taxi industry is largely owned by blacks, and we need to bring equity to those formerly excluded so they can join the economy.

“Charging exorbitant rates will not help our aim,” he said.

Assistance

The department said it would get help from other government departments, including the treasury and its agencies, to explore other possible funding mechanisms.

Taxi operators were urged to work towards transforming the industry to become more modern and technology savvy.

“If we can transform the industry technologically and provide a safe mode of public transport, it will become a choice for the young and the old,” said the minister.

Previous strike action saw taxi operators blocking key transport routes‚ causing widespread disruption.

Strikes have disrupted emergency health services, schools, airports‚ traffic and many other activities that impact on the economy.

At the end of May, taxi operators blocked transport routes in Durban as they made their way to Prospecton to protest outside the Toyota plant.

They were complaining that the Toyota Quantum vehicles favoured by the government were becoming too expensive.