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Gauteng Parents Urged to Keep Children at Home Due to Taxi Strike

PRETORIA – The Gauteng Department of Education advised parents to keep their children at home this Thursday as a safety precaution. Despite most learners writing their June examinations, the Gauteng MEC for Education, Panyaza Lesufi, assured that no child will be penalised for not making it to school due to the taxi strike.  He said those […]

By SAPeople
15-06-17 10:45
in Eish!

PRETORIA – The Gauteng Department of Education advised parents to keep their children at home this Thursday as a safety precaution.

Source: Twitter/Arrive Alive

Despite most learners writing their June examinations, the Gauteng MEC for Education, Panyaza Lesufi, assured that no child will be penalised for not making it to school due to the taxi strike.  He said those writing examinations will be allowed to write later.

“We have just made this call to keep school children home,” he said, because “the extent of the taxi strike has taken us off guard.”

“Please do not force matters. The safety of our learners comes first. No learner will be disadvantaged because of the taxi strike,” twitted MEC Lesufi on Thursday morning.

Taxi drivers affiliated to the SA National Taxi Association (Santaco) are embarking on protest action on major routes in the province, bringing traffic to a standstill.

The strike is affecting Gauteng’s main highways like the N1, N3, N14 and Johannesburg’s M1, which has caused major blockades on several key roads.

Drivers apparently barricaded the N1 highway in Midrand since 2am.

Source: Arrive Alive

Taxi commuters are also badly affected, with thousands left stranded at most of the taxi ranks around Johannesburg due to the strike.

Taxi operators are complaining about the excessive fees they are being charged when they buy Toyota Quantum vehicles, which is the popular taxi brand.

Ralph Jones, Santaco Gauteng chairperson, explained the taxis are marching to the South African Taxi Finance offices in Midrand to hand over a memorandum of grievances after being “hard hit by the high interest rate of 28% and blacklisting due to payment of R15‚000 per month over 72 months.”

Update 10h30:

The Minister of Transport has condemned the blocking of major roads by members of SANTACO, and condemned the violence that has characterised this demonstration… reminding them that while it is everyone’s constitutional right to demonstrate, this has to be done within the ambits of the law.

The Department said it is aware of the challenges faced by the taxi industry with regards to the affordability of financing their taxi vehicles, and sympathises… but that this is a matter between the industry and the SA taxi finance.

“We have also been informed that the parties have since reached an agreement and as such we therefore call upon SANTACO members to clear the roads so that the traffic flow can return to normal

“We also want to apologise to commuters who are affected and encourage them to use other modes of public transport such as busses and trains.”

– Mainly sourced SAnews.gov.za and Arrive Alive

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